Ben 10 AFTER Homecoming Sequel
by crystalquirt
Summary: Forever Knights' Scientist Dr. Joseph Chadwick decides to use Gwen and Kevin to get to Ben. Violence, gore - descriptive surgery, non-consensual sexual situations, mild language. Gwenvin and Benlie
1. Chapter 1

Homecoming: the sequel

After Homecoming

By crystalquirt

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13 from DA - thanks for helping me to get going even if it still took a while. :D

_[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]] _

Description : The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings - mild language, violence **so far**

_[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]] _

At the conclusion of part 12.

When they got home, and Julie and Ben were alone in his room, Ben was worried and told Julie that he didn't want to see her anymore because it was dangerous for her. She ignored him and gave him a kiss, and a hickey. Kevin in a wishy-washy way, proposed to Gwen. They said their goodbyes to Dr. Joe Bracket and his dog, Plumber and separated to get some rest.

_[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]] After Homecoming_

Ben was finally alone in his room. It seemed to him like it was the first time in a very long time that he had any alone-time. The clothes that Joe bought for them were clean, but lying unfolded all over the bed and he really wanted to lie down. The dirty sweats that he was still wearing from their last day on the road had to come off. These garments, he didn't even put in the laundry. Each piece of clothing flew across the room after he stripped it off and landed in the garbage can by his desk. He hoped he would never have to wear any of those clothes again, but some were nearly new and he couldn't stand to just throw them all away.

The lean teen, even leaner after his last adventure, let himself fall back on the bed in only his boxers. The sudden movement caused a mildly painful ache in his chest and he thoughtfully covered the bandaged wound with his hands. I think they aren't really telling me what happened in the operating room. I must have come very close to dying. They all fought so bravely to save me - some hero I am. Ben shuddered and actually felt a stress induced pain in his stomach too. Gwen told him that Dr. Joe, Kevin and Julie acted quickly to take care of him and stop Albedo from doing anymore damage. I owe Gwen and all of them my life. To think, even with all their help and them risking their lives to stop him, Albedo still managed to stab me in the chest while I was already helpless on the operating table, oh man that was too scary. I guess it was lucky for me I was already deep asleep under the anesthetic, but then again, if I wasn't helpless like that, perhaps I could have stopped Albedo right then!

Julie. The image of her smiling face flashed through his mind. He wished she had never been put into danger, and she had been hurt and tortured because of him. How can she even still look at me? Fear welled up inside him and made his chest hurt again. I can't let her get hurt again because of me! She doesn't even have powers, and didn't even know about the aliens or the earth being in danger until let her get close. I ruined any chance she had of being blissfully ignorant. Tears welled up in his eyes and spilled out of the corners, running into his hair. He pulled the pillow out from under his head and covered his face with it.

At least Kevin and Gwen knew about what they were getting into and I'm glad for their help. Shit. Even the first date we had, she got kidnapped by aliens! After a few minutes, the tears ran dry and stopped flowing. I guess I have to do something to change this so she can't get hurt again. It would be so much easier if she were angry with him and wanted nothing to do with him anymore. That was not the case, he knew. He thoughtfully felt his neck where Julie gave him a hickey. My first hickey! That thought made him smile, and even though his cheeks were already hot and red from crying, he felt them get hotter from blushing.

Turning his thoughts to less serious worries, Ben wondered how mad his parents would be when they saw the possessive love mark on his neck. Then another disturbing thought came to him, how did Julie even know how to make a hickey? He frowned.

"I wouldn't know how to make a hickey." He said out loud, and remembered it hurt a little too. Hickey's hurt - why should she want to hurt me? Of course at the time it was the sort of pain that he kinda enjoyed, because she was the one doing it to him - and he would have let her do, almost anything she wanted - but still, it hurt and now his head hurt thinking about it.

The mark she made, claiming him as her own was up too high on his neck to easily cover it with clothing. The weather was too warm to wear a scarf anyway, without raising suspicion.

Thoughts about hickeys were interrupted by a knock on his bedroom door. Ben's mom, Sandra asked through the door if she could come in and he jumped up throwing all the pillows off his bed. "Just a minute!" He picked his pillows up and looked in the mirror. Yep that hickey was not going to hide. He grabbed a book and lay back down on his bed with the book in front of his neck.

"Ok, Mom - Come in!" he already sounded guilty. She opened the door and he added, "Hi Mom."

"That's Sandra, sweetie, been telling you for years."

"Alright um . . . Sandra what's up?" To his horror, Sandra came in and sat on the edge of his bed. He moved the book up higher trying to be sure his neck was covered, the top edge on his chin.

"Ben, your friend Dr. Joe is such a nice young man, how fortunate you met him and he was around when you needed him!"

"Yeah, we were lucky." He watched while she took gauze and tape and ointment out of a bag. "What are you doing Mom?"

"Dr. Joe said your bandages need to be changed before you go to sleep."

"It's ok Mom, 'er Sandra I can do it."

"Don't be silly I will do it for you and I want to see where you were hurt! You are my son, I should know these things."

"But . . ."

"No buts . . ." Sandra pulled the book away before he could stop her and saw the hickey. She gasped audibly and yelled for Ben's father, "Carl!"

Already on his way with supplies, Carl came in carrying clean washcloth, towels and a pan of warm water with soap.

"Look at your son's neck!"

"Wow Ben, Good Job - er, why would you let someone do that to you - I hope it was Julie at least."

"Julie was just teasing she was really happy to be home!"

"How could she do that to you? I didn't know she was that kind of girl!"

"Come on Sandra it's not like you have never had a hickey."

"Carl!" She hit him on the shoulder, more of a love pat really between Ben's gentle parents.

"Well, okay Ben - but you better not be up to anything else with Julie do you hear me. You are too young!"

"Yeah Mom." Ben turned his head to the side while Carl helped Sandra take the old bandages off of his chest. His mom almost fainted when she saw his chest. "If that was another three inches higher it would have pierced your heart!"

"Sandra! Don't say things like that and scare him. The fact is you're ok Ben! And you're home safe."

The bandage change on his arm went with a little less drama. His dad still hopeful, "I know I can't take it off, but can't you take the Omnitrix off until your arm heals?"

"No dad, I might have to use it. I might as well tell you, besides the aliens there is an organization, a big one called the Forever Knights and they are after me and my friends."

"Why would they be after? . . . Never mind."

"Yeah, well they smuggle alien tech and often work with the Highbreed, but I don't think they understand how bad the Highbreed really are. While we were in California we messed up one of their smuggling operations. They followed us for a while, but I think we lost them, or they gave up or something."

"I do understand. We wouldn't want you to take a chance to be caught without it, even to allow yourself time to heal."

"I just hope you don't have to use it again."

_[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]] _

[To be continued . . .]


	2. Chapter 2

Homecoming: the Sequel - After Homecoming 2

By crystalquirt

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13 from DA - thanks for helping me to get going even if it still took a while. :D

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Description : The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings - mild language, violence

[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]] After Homecoming 2

"Mom, er . . . Sandra - that's enough tape! Its gonna tear holes in my skin when it has to come off!" The whining sounded the same as it did when Ben was only ten years old.

"Don't be silly Ben! I want to make sure no dirt can get in around the edges." She put on three more pieces before she pronounced her bandaging job complete. "Come on downstairs to eat, before you go to sleep okay? You are skinny and pale and you need some nourishment from my home cooking."

"Yeah Sandra, thanks." Exhausted, Ben followed his mom downstairs. Carl walked behind him with his hand on his shoulder, very thankful son made it home considering the severity of his injuries. When he saw the dining room table set with a giant bowl in the middle he perked up!

"Sandra! You made fries!"

"Yes, Ben and Vegetarian Chili!" Sandra handed him a large bowl of cheddar cheese to add as much as he wanted. "Just eat some broccoli first please." Ben hadn't even noticed the little bowl of steamed broccoli sitting near his plate.

"I will and thanks for making my favorite!" Ben smiled and dug in. While they ate vegetarian chili fries together, but only in celebration of the hero's return, Ben had a depressing thought. He remembered he hadn't done his homework from before they left!

After dinner he looked all over the house before he found his back pack in the coat closet. He sighed and trudged back upstairs to work on his paper. He lie on his stomach on the bed with books and papers spread out around him.

After only a few minutes the words all started looking blurry on the page and his head hurt. He was so tired his eyes started watering and burning. It felt so good to close his eyes and put his head down just for a moment that he purred happily and dropped his pencil on the floor. In only seconds he was breathing softly and regularly, having fallen sound-asleep.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

In front of Gwen's house, Kevin helped Gwen out of the car. Even though he was fumble fingered and weak-kneed while trying to help her, he felt like he was walking on air! After all, Gwen sort of-kind of said yes! She promised to marry him someday and she said she loved him!

He gently held both of her hands as she stood up from the car seat and she turned to walk with him to her family's front door. Kevin stopped her. He wasn't ready for her to go yet, even though they had spent all day and night together during the whole stressful trip and battles with the Forever Knights and Albedo.

"Gwen, do you want to go somewhere? We could go eat or something, my treat?"

"Aren't you tired Kevin?"

"No, I feel strangely energized." He smiled a little wickedly.

"Funny, so do I how about if I get a quick shower, and change clothes - I'll be right back!"

"I'll be here!" Kevin leaned with his but on the hood of his car to wait.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Ben's phone woke him up just before daylight. He was lying upside down on his bed on top of the covers, still in his clothes and drooling in his history book. He didn't even remember where he was for a moment, and since he laid on his books and papers all night. His chest was really sore, even before he heard the bad news he received on the phone.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

At the Forever Knight Castle, the Knights from California secretly met with the local Organization. In attendance among others was Dr. Joseph Chadwick and Sir Morton. They sat around a large round table with huge wooden chairs, like from King Arthur's time.

"We have followed Ben Tennyson and his friends back here and found them in your territory."

"Yes we are familiar - very familiar with Tennyson and his friends, they have been thorns in our sides for years now."

"Why have you not taken care of him before now? He ruined the Organization's operations in California."

"He is not easy to deal with."

"Perhaps my California Knights can do better. We have located one of his traveling companions stopped in a small town about 6 hours away. We will use him to find out exactly where Ben Tennyson went."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Dr. Joe Brackett and Plumber stopped in a small town on their way home that had a body shop according to the navigation equipment in the faux tank.

The Motel 6 right at the freeway off ramp took pets so he got a room and loaded all the weapons inside to hide them under the bed and in the center between the mattresses. He never knew a housekeeper in a motel to actually move anything to clean, so he knew they would be safe.

Joe loaded Plumber in the truck again once it was cleaned of anything that could be stolen and went to the body shop. He got an estimate, paid it and paid them extra to rush the paint job. 'Dill pickle green' was the name of the color he chose.

After his new vehicle was safely tucked away being painted, he and Plumber walked back to the Motel 6 and spent a quiet night sharing cheeseburgers from the restaurant next door and Plumber had his own bed.

Early the next morning Joe took Plumber to spend some quality time in a nearby dog park.

Joe could tell it was going to be a beautiful sunny day and they got to the park so early that no one else had showed up yet. Joe preferred it that way since Plumber didn't play well with others. No reason to think anything sinister was going on he let Plumber wander to the other side of the park as he marked each dog toy, bush and rock as his own.

The peace and silence on the side street was broken by a loud engine, and made Joe turn to look. The squealing of tires and the sight of the breaking chain link fence as the large vehicle busted through made Joe stand up and call Plumber. The vehicle stopped right in front of him and a Knight in full armor popped up from the sun roof pointing a laser lance at him.

Plumber was running back to his master from across the park, but didn't get there before they pulled Joe into the truck and slammed the doors. They roughly sat him down in the back. The largest Knight leaned down and looked right into his face, spitting while he spoke.

"You were helping those kids and Ben Tennyson! Where are they now?"

"I don't know who or what you're talking about."

The California Knight, Sir Marcus slapped Joe across the face without hesitation. Joe smiled, "Oh those kids, we split up - look if you want your truck back, I know where it is."

"We don't give a damn about the truck."

"We want those kids. We want Ben Tennyson!"

"I don't know where he is."

"Well then you are no good to us at all. Kill him!" a Knight pulled a short sword and aimed it at Joe's chest, preparing to run him through.

Plumber crashed through the windshield and bit the nearest Knight right through his armor. Joe grabbed a laser lance from under the seat and shot three of them before he jumped out with Plumber on his heels.

They ran across the park and out the back gate near a canal. He panted, "Its good they always hide their weapon's in the same places huh boy?

Plumber barked once and peed on the fence nearby.

The Knights that were left standing started to chase Joe and Plumber, but sirens coming to a call about a disturbance at the dog park scared them off. The Knights vehicle peeled out in the grass and took off. Plumber and Joe walked along the canal bank waiting until time to go pick up the truck. "We have to get back to help Ben huh boy?"

Plumber barked and ran on ahead to chase a bird.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

To be continued . . .


	3. Chapter 3

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 3  
By crystalquirt

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13 from DA - thanks for helping me to get going even if it still took a while. :D

Description : The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.  
Warnings - mild language, violence

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Joe dialed Ben's phone number never thinking he would have to use it so soon after their last adventure seemed to be over. Ben answered after only one ring.

"Ben! Be careful! The Forever Knights are still after you!"

"Joe? What? How do you know?" Ben sounded groggy at first, but soon startled awake.

"They attacked me and Plumber! If it wasn't for Plumber they would have killed me when I didn't tell them where you are. We barely got away."

"Sorry Joe . . . I wish they hadn't found you."

"I am on my way back - I will help however I can."

"No! Don't put yourself in more danger for us. You have done more than your share already!"

"You don't get a choice, see you soon."

Joe hung up. Ben dropped his phone and instantly regretted punching his pillow with the hand he just had surgery on. He cradled his Omnitrix arm. "OW! I so don't like this!" He was still so tired. Even though he was exhausted, he didn't sleep well on his books and homework. He let himself fall back over on his side and pulled his pillow over his head. Ben tried hard to pretend this wasn't happening, wishing it was a dream.

In a moment, he took a few deep breaths and was ready to accept that it really was happening and he had responsibilities to tend to. The biggest one right now, was to warn and protect Kevin, Gwen and Julie. They would all be in danger since the Knights knew they were 'members of his team'. "I never wanted a team, Grandpa Max was wrong, I am not ready."

Even though it was very early, he called Kevin first not really knowing his schedule. He guessed Kevin might still be up from being up all night, but Kevin was barely awake and Ben could hear it in his voice when he answered.

"Y-ellow? This better be important Tennyson."

"Kevin! The Knights are still after us! They attacked Joe on his way home and he barely got away!"

"I'm glad Joe got away, but not to worry about a bunch of tin cans. They've never beaten us before. This is nothing new."

"Yes it is new! There will be even more of them! Joe said it was Knights all the way from California following us! Are you forgetting what they did to us in California? You got shot! Julie was kidnapped among other things!"

"They had Albedo helping them, remember? There still isn't much we can do except watch each other's backs until something happens. I'm taking Gwen to school do you want me to come get you?"

"No I'll be ok. Just be careful and please, protect Gwen!"

"With my life man."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Joe got back to the body shop with Plumber to pick up the truck quickly. He had a vinyl decal for the windshield from the sign shop next door and paid one of the guys at the shop extra to help him put it on. It was as long as the windshield was wide and went on in three different colored layers across the top edge on the glass.

When they finished he stepped back and admired it, "Pickle Juice" it said in big fat letters. He was proud of the name he gave his sparkly green, tank-like truck and gave the guys at the body shop another tip. Plumber jumped flatfooted all the way up and in the passenger side window, without scratching the new paint with his claws. Joe drove back to the motel room to get their stuff.

"Now the knights will never recognize their former assault vehicle, right boy?"

If plumber could speak English, or cared at all he would have told his master that the truck was not all that different from the way it was. Joe whistled happily with the radio while he drove. Last thing before they left town and got back on the freeway, he took the tank sized truck through a drive through and got three more cheeseburgers, two were for his large Wolf Hybrid companion. Plumber at them both except for the pickles.

As he pulled away from the drive-through he saw the passenger side tires had smashed all the little flowers growing in a bed lining the way. He stopped and ran back in to pay the manager so they could put more flowers in. Joe yelled 'Sorry' as he exited and ran back to Pickle Juice.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Even though he was up way too early he started getting ready for school. Ben gathered his books together and stuffed them in his backpack. He pulled shirt and pants off the hangers slowly and sullenly, his pillow beckoning. If I go back to sleep now, I won't ever get up in time. I am too tired to deal with this again so soon. Why didn't the Knights just give up? They always did before.

His chest ached more from the mental stress he was experiencing than from the physical injury. The pain got so bad it forced him to sit down and take some deep breaths before he went to take his shower.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Kevin blew the horn when he pulled up in front of Gwen's house. He jumped out and ran around to the passenger side to hold the door open for her as she walked out of the house.

"Good Morning Kevin." She said happily and standing in front of him, found both of his hands to hold. She closed her eyes, tilted her head to move closer for a kiss. Kevin gladly obliged and kissed her passionately before they got in the car and he told her the bad news.

The green and black muscle car stopped across the street from the front entrance to Gwen's school and Kevin shut it off, hoping for a long goodbye kiss from Gwen. "You stay in crowds today Gwen, I will come back and get you for lunch, okay? Don't go anywhere alone and don't talk to anyone you don't know. . . "

"Kevin, don't you think I'm a little old for the 'don't talk to strangers talk?'"

"Well yes, but you know what I mean . . . call me if anything happens, anything! Even if you break a nail okay?"

"Yes daddy." Gwen hopped up and gave him a quick goodbye peck and left him wanting more. He sadly watched her go all the way into the building before he got back in his car. Maybe I should stay here just in case. . . No, she will be ok. I pity the Knight that tries to surprise attack her anyway. I think I will go by Ben's school to check on him and do a little shopping before I come back to get Gwen for lunch.

Kevin's thoughts went to wishing he could be everywhere at once. Too bad Ben wasn't smart enough to go to Gwen's school so he could keep an eye on both of them at once. He chucked as he started the car and drove away from the curb.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

[To be continued . . .]


	4. Chapter 4

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 4  
By crystalquirt  
General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13 from DA - thanks for helping me to get going even if it still took a while. :D

Description : The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.  
Warnings - mild language, violence

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

In front of his school, Ben saw Kevin pull up without Gwen in the car while he was locking up his bike. Kevin got out and leaned against the driver's door, waiting for him to come over. Ben had finished locking his bike up and jogged quickly across the street without his backpack, "Where's Gwen?"

"Relax man, she's at school. I'm going to take her to lunch too. I came to check on you. Need anything?"

"Sleep - and my chest to stop hurting." Ben rubbed over the top of his bandaged chest.

"Sorry man, can't help ya . . . had a rough night?"

"You could say that, and then morning got worse."

"Yeah, I know, I got a phone call before daylight from a crazy person, and thank-you. Have you seen Julie yet? Have you told her?"

"I saw her, she's fine, but I hid from her. I didn't want to worry her. I'll keep an eye on her today and tell her later."

"Don't worry Ben. We will kick their butts, like always."

"Are you recovered? You were injured during our last fights too."

"Nothing a little aspirin can't fix. I'm fine and if you don't need anything, I have some business to take care of - see you later."

"What business?"

"I'm going to go buy Gwen a ring! . . . Ben! She said yes last night!"

"She said yes to what?"

"You can be so dense sometimes! Gwen said she would marry me!"

"No way, you are both too young to get married."

"Someday, she said she would marry me someday! She said she loved me!"

"That's no surprise - she's been warm for you since you joined us."

"You are no fun Ben, like I said I have business. See you later. Be careful and call if you need anything."

"Alright, thanks Kevin." Ben went back to his bike and got his backpack on his way to his first class. When he reached the door, he stopped and took a deep breath before he went in. And of course, his classmates teased him for being gone so long.

Blond headed, Bill Hinderduffy tied Ben's shoelaces together under his desk when he bent down to pick up his dropped-on-purpose pencil. When Ben tried to get out of his desk to go to the chalkboard, he fell hard on his chest. It knocked the wind out of him and sent pain through his ribcage all the way through to his back. He couldn't get up or even untangle his shoelaces.

Ben rolled onto his side and crossed his arms over his chest trying to catch his breath through the blinding pain he felt. This is just great - my classmates are going to kill me with pranks before the Forever Knights even get another chance to finish me off.

Fortunately Julie was in class with him and ran between the desks and their laughing students to get to Ben's side. Julie was the only one who thought it important to make sure he was okay. Even the teacher just looked annoyed at the interruption.

Julie scolded, "You're all jerks - he just had surgery! He didn't miss all those days because he was having fun on vacation or something! You might have really hurt him!" The class got very quiet as they watched her gently help him sit up and got the knot out of his shoelaces for him.

"Ben, are you okay?"

Ben nodded at Julie and put his head back against the desk with his eyes closed to wait for the muscle spasm to pass. The teacher finally went over to see what was going on. "Do you need to go to the nurse, Tennyson?"

"No, I'm f-fine." He spoke breathlessly. Julie and the teacher helped him sit back down sideways in his chair so he could bend forward until the pain passed. Julie stayed close to him until he was breathing normally and the color returned to his cheeks. He thanked her and gave her hand a squeeze before she went back to her desk.

That was just the beginning of a long, nerve-racking morning at school for Ben Tennyson. Not only did he look over his shoulder every few minutes for Knights, it was the first day back after missing so many days gone and the make-up work piled on. Even before lunch his backpack felt twice as heavy as usual.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Ben hid from Julie at lunch. He hated avoiding her especially after she helped him earlier in front of the whole class, but facing her meant that he would have to tell her that he didn't want to see her anymore. Ben was planning to tell her that she should get as far away from him as possible. It was for her own good, he had convinced himself. Now that the Knights from California were in Bellwood they could recognize her as the friend of his that they captured and tortured for a while in their castle.

Kevin went to the mall after he saw Ben. The sales lady at the jewelry counter helped him pick a beautiful setting and diamond for Gwen. She would have never guessed such a young man could afford such an expensive ring and he paid in cash. She vowed never to judge anyone by appearance again. Whistling on his way back out to his car he was distracted by love, and dreaming about Gwen's happiness when he gave her the ring. He wasn't paying attention to his surroundings. He sat the ring in its little box where Gwen would find it when she got in and drove back to her school, to take her out for lunch.

"Kevin I love it!" Gwen squealed upon opening the little box. "Thank-you so much!" They were still standing by the car in front of her school when she hugged him and showered him with kisses. He held her tightly and they kissed more seriously, and passionately, before he found his way to suck on her neck a little. Kevin knew better than to leave a mark on her neck, it took him a week to fully recover from what she did to him the first time he tried to give her a hickey.

Gwen admired the ring one more time and got in the car so gracefully with him guiding her in by the hand that Kevin imagined she was floating, or maybe she was. He knew with her Anodyte powers she was more than capable of a little floating. Driving his car like it was capable of flying too; he took Gwen to the fanciest seafood and vegetarian combination restaurant he knew since she seemed to like that sort of thing and he could stand tuna or breaded shrimp.

Once inside Gwen even showed the hostess her ring while they were being seated. Gwen couldn't have cared less what they were eating. Sitting with Kevin, having a candlelit lunch in the middle of a school day was amazingly enough that she barely noticed when her food came.

Kevin was a little late getting Gwen back to class after lunch, but she didn't even scold him for it. In fact she didn't seem to notice. He watched her go in, still not watching what was going on around him as well as he should have been. Or he would have seen he was being watched.

Kevin cruised for a while, watching for any Forever Knight or DNAlien activities. His thoughts were still completely occupied with Gwen. He didn't notice he picked up a tail. Kevin was supposed to pick Gwen up again from her preppy school to take her home in a few minutes, so he pulled into the driveway a little before time for last bell.

All eyes stared at him and his muscle car as he parked near the entrance to wait for Gwen in a no parking zone. There were teens pouring out of classrooms and getting on buses all around him. He didn't realize all the activity was keeping him safe from those who watched him for a short time at least.

He got a call from Gwen, and answered quickly. "Kevin, I'm sorry but I have to stay after for a little while. The yearbook committee is holding an emergency meeting about the lack of funds to complete printing and I have to be there."

"Its fine Gwen, I'm already here and will be here whenever you are finished. I have some work to do on the car to keep me occupied."

"Thanks Kevin, love you."

"Love you too."

He sighed and ended the call. He watched the rest of the students get on the buses, and parents in cars picking up others. Most of them blew their horn at him irritated because they had to go around his car since he parked in the middle of all the activity, but wasn't moving. Kevin just waved and smiled at them. When there was a break in the line of traffic going around him, he got his creeper out of the trunk and a rag and wrench to go under the car to see if a troublesome gasket was still leaking.

The nasty thing was still leaking a little and making a mess on his perfectly manicured engine. Kevin carefully wiped off all the oil and tightened everything that looked like it needed tightening. He noticed that the parking lot was less busy as he started to roll himself out from under the car, but on his way, he saw a wire rubbing on the edge of the metal frame. He determined a little electric tape was needed, rolled out the rest of the way and went back to the trunk.

After he got the tape he noticed how quickly the parking lot in front of the school cleared out. "Guess Gwen's school has fewer students than most around here." He mumbled and lay back down on the creeper to roll back under his car to find the wire with tape in hand.

Before he could finish taping it up there was a pull on his leg that rolled him on the creeper all the way out from under his car. The sun was in his eyes when he looked, but thinking it was Gwen playing again, he laughed, "Hey, let me finish or the radio might not keep . . ." even with the sun behind this figure he could tell this wasn't Gwen. He quickly rolled off the creeper to get to his feet and as he went began to absorb the green iron from the car with a touch from his fingertips. The iron covering his body didn't even make it up to his shoulder before a second and third Knight attacked him.

The first kicked him in the stomach with an armored foot and the second hit him twice across the back of his neck and shoulders with the handle end of a laser lance. Kevin moaned and fell back to the pavement face first. The green iron he started to absorb dissolved when he lost consciousness.

Sir Morton was the Knight who pulled him out from under his car and he was the one who picked Kevin up and threw him over his shoulder like a muscular sack of potatoes. The three Knights had silently landed their air speeders behind Kevin's car without him hearing them and there was no help or even a witness in the parking lot while it happened.

To aide in controlling the skilled fighter, Dr. Chadwick prescribed a sedative to be given to Kevin upon his capture. Just to be sure he wouldn't wake up and fight his way out of the Knight's control.

Sir Morton got on the air speeder with Kevin lying face-down across his lap. The other two nights lifted off immediately, but Sir Morton stopped to give Kevin the injection first. He took the lid off the needle and stabbed it into the side of Kevin's muscular neck. It burned, and even unconscious Kevin moaned and moved his legs weakly, but didn't fully wake up.

The three Forever Knights' air speeders took off across the sky and out of sight.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]  
[To be continued . . .]


	5. Chapter 5

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 5

By Crystalquirt

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13 from DA - thanks for helping me to get going even if it still took a while. :D

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

Description : The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings - mild language, more violence, horror. Gwenvin and Benlie

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]] 5

Just after last bell at school, Ben was standing at the bike rack putting his helmet on to go home. After a day of lugging around a heavier backpack than usual his chest was sore and he was moving stiffly like he was in pain. Julie came up behind him.

"How come you wouldn't answer my calls all day? I missed you."

"Sorry Julie, I just have so much on my mind."

"I know, the Knights followed us home."

"How did you know about the Knights?"

"When you wouldn't answer your phone I called Gwen."

"Well yeah the Knights are after us, but that's not all of it."

"Well Ben, what else is wrong?"

Ben gathered all the determination he had, "I don't want you around me anymore! It's not safe around me and it never will be – so I want you to just go away! Pretend you don't know me!" He yelled, but he didn't mean to.

As he tried to spit out what he thought he had to say, she watched him and watched him turn away from her with tears in his eyes. Julie refused to believe he really meant what he said. He couldn't really mean he didn't want her around could he? Before Julie could answer or argue, Ben jumped on his bike and sped away. She was sure Ben was just scared and stressed out and she was determined to help him get through this.

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

When Gwen finally came out after her meeting Kevin was nowhere in sight and De-Lite towing company was towing his car. She ran over to the operator. He had just hooked the cable on and pulled the lever to wench Kevin's pride and joy up on his flatbed truck.

"Hey! That's my friend's car!"

The operator stopped the wench. "So you ain't the owner then?"

"No! But I am his fiancé! Didn't you see him out here waiting for me?"

"No, I ain't seen nobody but you and the school wants this car out of here. If you ain't the owner there is nothing I can do to help you."

Gwen saw a wrench, electric tape and Kevin's creeper lying next to the curb like he wasn't finished using them. "Kevin would not have just left his tools lying about. He doesn't even leave his tools lying around in the garage when he's home." Gwen mumbled.

"What?" the driver shouted over the sound of his wench.

"Nothing." Gwen yelled and sent a call to Kevin's phone and got his voice mail, "Kevin! Where are you? They're towing your car from in front of my school!"

Frustrated and scared that something bad happened to Kevin, she walked farther away from the noisy truck and called Ben. He answered right away, but she didn't give him a chance to even say hello.

"Ben! We have big trouble! Kevin's gone! They are towing his car from in front of my school! I know he was here - I spoke to him and he said he would wait! Ben! What if . . ."

"Hang on Gwen – take a breath! I'll be right there!" Ben had run out in the yard while Gwen was talking. He slapped his Omnitrix and Jetray appeared in his place for an instant before he took off. Jetray mumbled, "I can never have a normal life, or a normal relationship with Julie so long as I have this thing on my wrist."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

In a large conference room in a new, very secret Forever Castle Dr. Joseph Chadwick, Director of Technology for the Forever Knights addressed a group of Knights and other scientists assigned to him for the upcoming project. He tapped the hologram he had of Kevin over the table, temporarily disrupting it.

"Knights! He is our mission. To find out what makes Kevin Ethan Levin tick!" The hologram flickered. "We still need to capture the girl, Gwen Tennyson, but for now we can start with this subject alone." Chadwick tapped the edge of the hologram projector and made it flicker again.

"Oh, forget this thing. Let's go see our real objective shall we?"

Dr. Chadwick led the group of Knights and other scientists down a torch-lit corridor that looked like it couldn't lead to anything that involved technology, but when the group got to the well-lit end of the corridor, double doors opened up into a large room with a tall ceiling. There were huge picture windows that allowed a beautiful view of the surrounding countryside and they were at least three stories up. The windows darkened on Dr. Chadwick's verbal command to cut down on the glare and to hide what they were working on, even from the squirrels and birds in the trees outside. They were standing on clean white ceramic tiled floors with stainless steel tables and counters positioned efficiently providing plenty of work space.

In the center was a stainless steel circular platform with six stainless steel columns spaced evenly around the edge. The columns went up through a stainless steel plate mounted in the ceiling. Chained by his arms out to his sides and a little above his head was Kevin. He was still unconscious, his chin resting on his chest. Wearing a very lightweight garment like a cross between a robe and a hospital gown, it offered him very little cover. A light belt made of the same fabric was tied loosely around Kevin's waist and kept it closed in the front. The cloth clung to the moisture covering his skin from the cold sweat caused by the drugs they gave him.

He was suspended by stainless steel chains attached to two columns straight across from each other, his toes were a few inches off the plate below. The plate had a circular channel sloped to a drain behind him to aid in cleanup if their 'experiments' got messy. Stainless steel ankle cuffs kept Kevin's legs slightly apart from each other and away from the columns he was chained to. His hands and feet were wrapped tightly in layers of heavy burlap cloth that went well above his ankles and wrists.

The burlap cloth was useless for Kevin to absorb and kept him from being able to touch any of the stainless steel that would otherwise have been in contact with his skin. The burlap around his hands was so tight it kept his fingers closed. His hands forced to stay in tight fists so he couldn't use his fingernails to tear or pull on the cloth.

Dr. Chadwick had been gazing at his 'subject' for what seems to his subordinates like a long time. Finally he asked Sir Morton, "Why has he not yet recovered from the tranquilizer I prescribed?"

"I wanted to make sure he couldn't escape us so I gave him all of it, all at once."

Dr. Chadwick glared at Sir Morton and stepped up on the platform where he could reach to check Kevin's pulse at his neck. Kevin's head rolled limply to the side when he touched his neck. "You idiot, that much of that drug could have stopped his heart and killed him before we finished with him. The sweating is proof of an overdose. If he was to die before we learned anything, it would be worse than if he escaped - for we could always capture him again."

"I apologize Sir." Sir Morton didn't sound very sincere but rather than argue with him, Dr. Chadwick continued.

"If we can incorporate his powers into our armies, we will have no need of armor except for show. And his abilities make him very powerful. I have seen him pick up a section of pavement a hundred feet long and shake it like a towel, crumbling it and his enemies at his feet. Our ranks will be unstoppable because I will improve on his abilities even more for our men."

"Sir, you have the mind control technology to make him work for us. Can't we use him to capture Tennyson?"

"Perhaps we can, Knight. After the preliminary experiments are complete . . . I wonder. Thank you um . . . your name Knight?"

"Elliot, Sir."

"Thank you Sir Elliot, I will consider your suggestion. In fact I am putting you in charge of the detail to capture the female, report below. Sir Pierce will have your detail assembled below. I will call and tell them to expect you."

"Thank you Sir. We will bring Gwen Tennyson to you immediately." Sir Elliot marched out of the lab. Sir Morton glared at Sir Elliot like he was a rival neighborhood kid that just took his toys away.

Upon hearing Gwen's name Kevin groaned and pulled weakly at his restraints. In seconds he shook the effects of the sedation off and blinking, realized he was restrained. He also saw the Knights and scientists looking at him. When he opened his eyes and saw that he was restrained and suspended helplessly and with very little clothing, he panicked and struggled harder.

"You jerks! I'll make you sorry you ever brought me here."

"Yes, I am sure you will try, but you will regret being here more. You will finally be the cause of Ben Tennyson's demise."

That made Kevin even angrier and he struggled, realizing how tight the chains held him and how sore his joints were already from being suspended.

Dr. Chadwick ordered, "The Knights I chose for lab duty remain, the rest of you Knights are dismissed."

"Sir!" they all said at once and exited.

"Alright, Daisy. I have the first series of experiments set up and ready to proceed and since our subject is finally awake, I see no reason to delay. You prep him. I will be ready to begin soon." The blond female scientist, her name badge with 'Daisy' clearly written on it with a hand drawn flower stepped up. She wore green scrubs more like a surgeon than a scientist and approached Kevin with a mass of wires and electrodes, wheeling a little cart. She put the cart up on the stainless steel platform so the wires would reach as high as his shoulders.

"What are you doing?" Kevin demanded as she pulled the knot out of the fabric belt and opened his robe like she was opening curtains at a window at dawn.

"Ahhhhg!" he cried in surprise and when he looked down he was very relieved to see he still had brief's on at least. She placed the electrodes on his chest, stomach and abdomen right at the edge of the waistband in his briefs. More went under the robe on his back and all of them plugged into the little machine.

Kevin pulled weakly at the chains as she moved around him, trying to see what she was doing. She came back in front of him and reached up to put electrodes on each side of his head. "I'm warning you! I don't give in to torture!"

"Well then, I guess its good this isn't for torturing you. It is to monitor your physical reactions while Dr. Chadwick uses that equipment to torture you." She laughed out loud as Kevin followed her pointing finger to another larger mobile cart with several devices and instruments on it. Dr. Chadwick was standing near it putting on gloves and adjusting knobs.

"You see m'boy, your ability to absorb materials and become super strong makes you worth something to the Organization. You see, not only will I find out how you do what you do, from now on you will do it for us."

"I will never work for you!"

"You do not have a choice. Here, make like you are going to use this for armor or whatever you call it." Chadwick held an inch and a half wide steel washer like is used under the head of a bolt up to Kevin's skin, just under his ribs on one side. Kevin looked down at it and looked right at Chadwick, "Screw you." He said slowly.

"No - I think not, this is a washer, but great idea! You will be the one who is screwed." Chadwick very pleased at his wit smiled and reached back over on the cart. He grabbed a screw out of the metal tray, a real wood screw about an inch and a half long and held it point against Kevin's skin in the center of the washer.

"Now, do it." The scientist threatened and grinned maniacally. Kevin ignored him, so without further warning Chadwick shoved the screw through the washer and Kevin's skin.

Kevin groaned and tried to pull away, sucking in his stomach desperately trying to get away from the pain. He actually growled at Chadwick when he looked at him. A trickle of blood ran from around the screw now buried up to its head in Kevin's skin and muscle. "Now do you see? I have a whole tray full of little things made of metal to work with. You will cooperate.

"Fine, you won't be able to learn anything this way anyway!" Kevin showed no more reaction as the washer and the screw melted, spreading out flatter to cover a small area of his skin about two inches across. The screw hurt a little as it came out of his skin and joined the washer, forming with the metal. Once it was incorporated into his skin it mysteriously no longer caused him pain.

"Curious." Chadwick said and felt the edges of the little metal plate trying to see how it was stuck to him. It didn't hurt, but Kevin still tried to pull away, not wanting to be touched by even Chadwick's gloved hands.

Kevin sounded calm, "Alright, so what did that prove? Don't tell me know you know how I do it. Even I don't know exactly how I do it."

"Have you always been able to do this? I will need a list of everything you eat, say, everything you ate in the last month."

"You're nuts, I'm not gonna answer a bunch of questions."

"Suit yourself. . . Daisy? Assistance please." Daisy moved to stand between Dr Chadwick and his cart of instruments and gadgets and she put on gloves too before Chadwick said, "Scalpel."

"What, no! Get away from me!" Kevin panicked as Daisy handed Chadwick a scalpel, a surgical knife! He screamed and kicked against the cuffs around his ankles while the disk was slowly cut from his skin. With his skin peeled away, a thin layer of fatty tissue was visible for a moment before the area quickly filled with blood and ran down into his cotton briefs near his hip.

Daisy held out a sterile pan and the doctor dropped the piece of Kevin into it with a metallic 'tink' sound. He took the pan to the counter and started getting out more instruments and pushed buttons on the wall activating robotic arms to aid him in his work.

Kevin was still moaning weakly, very close to passing out. He was wishing he had passed out and cursed his strong composure. Daisy stepped up next to him and pressed sterile gauze over the bloody area making him scream through his clenched teeth. Showing no feelings about his reaction or suffering she started wiping blood from around the wound.

"Why do you bother cleaning the wound you helped him inflict on me? I know it's not because you care."

"We don't want any infection, and you're possibly dying from it, affecting our progress or the outcome of Dr. Chadwick's experiments." When the bleeding had slowed, she put a wad of clean gauze over his wound and taped it in place.

"What now?"

"You can rest until the Doctor needs you again." Daisy found the edges of the robe and crossed them over Kevin's flat stomach. She tied the cloth belt loosely around his waist and walked away.

"Hey! You think I can rest like this? Let me down."

"Not until you are better controlled, little guinea pig. Rest as you are."

[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[[BEN10AF]]]]]]]]]]]]]

[To be continued . . .]


	6. Chapter 6

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 6

By crystalquirt

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13 from DA - thanks for helping me to get going even if it still took a while. :D

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]]

Description : The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings - mild language, violence. Gwenvin and Benlie

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]] 6

Jetray Ben got to Gwen's school quickly and found her waiting for him. She was already sitting on the sidewalk in meditation posture with glowing pink eyes. Used so recently, the tools that Kevin left behind had had very strong Kevin essence about them.

With Kevin and his car missing they had a transportation problem again. While they were trying to figure out how to get where they needed to go Ben got a call from Dr Joe saying he was in town and wanting to know where he should meet them.

"But Joe! You have done enough for us, you've lost enough! Including your house, I don't want you putting yourself in danger for us."

"Just tell me where to meet you!"

"Go ahead Ben – tell him, he can give us a ride at least to help us get Kevin back and he already proved himself to be good in a fight."

With Joe on his way, at least their transportation problems had been solved. Ben sat on the curb near Gwen to wait with her. She already had a strong sense of which way Kevin had been taken and she knew he had been taken by air probably in the forever Knight's air speeders.

She gasped suddenly and grabbed her side. "Ow! Ben – they're hurting him!"

"What? You can feel it?"

"Oh! His pain is so intense and I have such a good link! Ahnnnn – this has never happened before! Kevin No!"

"Well can't you break the link or something?" Ben tried to help, but she closed her eyes and lost consciousness.

"Gwen? Wake up!" Ben caught her as she fell over and pulled her against him. He shook her gently wishing she would wake up and laid her head down on his lap. "Hurry Joe!" Now thankful that he was on his way.

With Ben so focused on Gwen and worrying about her, he didn't notice the sound of the air speeders coming. It was just pure luck that the Knight's first shot from a laser lance missed, but hit right behind Ben. It blasted him forward with Gwen and he managed to keep her in a hug so he hit the pavement first after their somersault. His chest hurt, but the pain was quickly pushed back and replaced with anger and a lot of fear. The Knights were back to try and finish him off.

Sir Elliot had given the order to capture Gwen not even realizing that the boy she was with was Ben. It was his first mission where he was giving the role of leader and he was a little too reckless.

Ben slapped his Omnitrix and went Humongousaur to wrap his giant arms around Gwen and get her under some cover. As he picked her up, all five Knights fired at him striking him along his back. Humongousaur even winced a little under the strong fire, but he hugged Gwen close and placed her gently against the strong, old brick building where the school administration offices were. This long after school hours, even the housekeeping staff had left for the day.

Humongousaur looked up at the air speeders and decided Jetray would be his best defense. As Jetray, he calculated he could take the two that were flying at him out before the others turned and made another run at them. He had planned it so he would always be between the Knights and Gwen. He used his neuroshock beams from his eyes and his tail at the same time and took out two of the air speeders. They crashed into the trees behind the school grounds.

The other three came around and all headed for him at once. He tried the neuroshock beam move again aimed at two of them, but one rolled and the beam from Jetray's tail missed. His eye beam's aim was dead on and another air speeder went down.

The Knight he missed was heading for Gwen, but just as he turned to chase him down, the third air speeder rammed him. The Knight operating it, shot Jetray in what would be the 'upper arm' area of his wing, if it was a human arm. Now if he let go, he was sure he would fall and the Knight was taking him higher. He pulled himself up on top of the air speeder where he could reach the Knight. Even injured, Jetray was stronger than any man in armor.

Jetray-Ben held onto the front of the speeder with his hind feet and punched the Knight in the face mask with his one good wing, but the guy came back up with a laser lance and shot at Jetray again. Jetray slid off the front of the air speeder and held on for dear life to the Knight by his armor. The Knight turned him around and held him in a headlock. With his back to the Knight, Jetray couldn't reach him with his wings, eye beams or tail.

As a last chance, Jetray Ben put his head back and used the stingers on his head. Jetray's stingers carried a powerful poison and one of them punched right through a seam in the armor and stung the Knight in the shoulder.

The Knight cried out in pain and let go of Jetray. The air speeder crashed into the trees. Jetray was falling helplessly toward the parking lot. Ben knew he couldn't fly with any of his winged aliens with a shoulder wound and needed an alien that could survive the fall!

The last Knight standing was still after Gwen. He landed and was trying to dig her out of the rubble to take her back to headquarters. The Knight stubbornly planned to take Gwen back with him no matter how badly she was broken. He was sure Sir Elliot would be blamed for damaging their objective before she could be captured, but it didn't matter since it was unlikely that Sir Elliot survived the air speeder crash.

While free falling, Ben took a big chance and chose Goop. Since Goop's controller had been broken during a fight with the Knight named Steel, he wasn't sure he could even turn into Goop anymore. To his relief he did turn into Goop as he fell, but his felling of relief didn't last long. Formless green Goop splashed onto the pavement in the parking lot near the parked air speeder and where the Knight was still trying to dig Gwen out of the rubble.

Ben, as Goop survived the fall, but now he couldn't move or deactivate the Omnitrix. The control module was still damaged and had fallen into the unmoving green puddle with the control for the Omnitrix. Ben was aware of what was happening for a few moments, aware that Gwen was in trouble and he couldn't help her. Soon he fainted, but the puddle of goo that was Ben didn't look any different.

The large green vehicle labeled "Pickle Juice" came roaring into the parking lot. Seeing the Forever Knight's air speeder Joe knew there was already trouble. He put Pickle Juice in low gear and rolled right over the top of the air speeder. He stopped with the rear tires still on the crushed machine, grabbed a laser lance and threw open the moon roof. In two shots even the armored Knight was down and Joe shot him again just to make sure he stayed down.

He ran over and saw what the Knight was after. Gwen was mostly uncovered, but her legs were still under the broken bricks. Joe finished digging her out and checked her over quickly before carrying her to Pickle Juice. He put her on a newly upholstered bench and jumped back out to find Ben.

Joe suspected the worst had happened to Ben since the only way he would not have been protecting Gwen was if he was unable to. He carefully scanned the parking lot looking for Ben's body in hope there might still be some life left in him.

"Ben!" he shouted - recognizing the puddle of green goo that he had parked a huge front tire in. Joe jumped in and backed out of the puddle and back over the crushed speeder. He moaned with dismay when he got back out and saw the streak of goo that now covered the ground the speeder and to the tire. Goop soaked into the deep all-terrain tread. He searched in the main puddle of Goop looking for the control metal. He remembered Gwen had done something with it the last time he was stuck as Goop.

He didn't know what she did to deactivate it, he rolled it over and over in his hands until it suddenly flashed green and all the goop gathered back into one puddle. Joe still didn't know what he did exactly, but lying on the ground was Ben. He quickly checked his pulse and respiration rate and picked him up to take him to the truck. He put him across from Gwen and after checking her quickly again, strapped them in and drove around the block to avoid any questions from people or the officers who were sure to arrive soon to investigate the 'disturbance' at the school.

He parked out of sight behind a grocery store and went back to his two injured friends, who were also unfortunately his patients once again. Ben seemed the least seriously injured so he started with Gwen. Joe pulled one of his recently restocked medical kits out from under the bench and started checking Gwen over carefully and cleaning and bandaging her cuts. One cut and bump on her head concerned him greatly. He decided not to wait, stowed his gear, strapped her back onto the bench and started Pickle Juice up to take her to the nearest urgent care center.

The sound of the engine noise again startled Ben awake and he panicked when he found himself tied down. He thought for sure the Forever Knights had him! Joe was checking the GPS to find the nearest urgent care when he heard Ben yell. He got back just in time to stop him from slapping the Omnitrix to go Humongousaur in the relatively small area.

"Ben! You're okay! Take it easy!" he said soothingly, his bedside manor was effective as always and Ben immediately settled down.

"Joe? Guess you got here just in time. Thanks." he looked over at his injured cousin, "is Gwen okay?"

"I think so but we are going to go get an MRI of her head at least to be sure. I don't like that she is still unconscious." Joe took the straps off of Ben and let him up. Ben saw that Gwen had several bandages. "Doc, what happened to her? She only fainted because she sensed Kevin!"

"No Ben, most of a brick wall fell on her, you must have already been Goop and couldn't save her . . . and . . . She sensed Kevin how?"

"I'm not sure exactly, she said he was in pain and it hurt her too. She said she had found which direction we would have to go to find him, but then she fainted and we were attacked!" Ben got more and more upset the more he talked about it.

"Don't worry about her Ben, we'll get her healed up quickly so she can find Kevin again and we'll save him."

"I just hope its not already too late." Ben sat on the edge of the bench by Gwen and held her hand for the trip to he urgent care. Plumber jumped up and carefully stepped around her legs before lying down with his head against Ben's leg.

"Hey, Plumber, its good to see you again." he scratched his ears with his free hand when he wasn't having to hold on. Joe navigated quickly to the care center and they got her right in. The staff even let the visiting Dr. Joe Bracket treat her with no interference. It seemed like he knew the head nurse here too, Ben smiled briefly before following the gurney with Gwen on it down the hall to the MRI department.

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]]

to be continued . . .


	7. Chapter 7

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 7

By Crystalquirt

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13 from DA - thanks for helping me to get going even if it still took a while. :D

Description : The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings – violence, mild language. Gwenvin and Benlie

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]] 7

Dr. Chadwick poked, pried and tried to cut the piece of Kevin's armored skin apart that he had cut from him. Meanwhile, Kevin's blood soaked through the ineffective bandage that Chadwick's assistant had covered the wound with. Kevin hung in the chains moaning softly as he tried to get the pressure off his wrists while the wound in his side burned.

Chadwick was amazed that no skin cells would come off for examination under the microscope. On any normal human, cells shed easily with the lightest touch of even a cotton ball to the cheek. This sample refused to be dissected through any means he had thought of. As a last resort he tried soaking the piece of Kevin's armored skin in some sort of liquid and while it soaked he went back to his subject of study.

"Well Kevin you have very interesting skin don't you. Let's start again shall we?"

"Do I have a choice?" Kevin's voice cracked a little and even though he tried hard not to, he started shaking. He wasn't feeling very tough or brave he was mostly just feeling very afraid. He was really worried about Gwen and Ben, and at the same time wondering why they hadn't come to rescue him yet.

"No, you don't get a choice." Chadwick chucked as he rolled over some more equipment.

"You know my friends will come, they will rescue me and probably take you and this whole place out doing it."

"You're friends will come. I sent an armored patrol of our best men to get the girl next."

"No!" Kevin groaned and struggled.

Daisy began 'prepping' their subject for the next experiment. The robe Kevin had been wearing was cut completely off to get it out of the way. He shivered and while hanging helplessly by his arms, ankles chained apart, wearing only his underwear he really didn't want her near him for several reasons. He twisted and turned as much as he could trying to get away from her.

This time, she was putting more, and larger electrodes on his head and then his chest. She looked into his eyes, smacked her gum and stuck one on so it covered his nipple. She smiled at him and ripped it back off, leaving a red mark from the adhesive on his skin and making him whine through his clenched teeth. She put that one back on him a little lower, put four on his stomach and four more on his back before running heavy wires back to the equipment.

"Come on man, can't we make some kind of deal? I can get you some really unusual, expensive alien tech if you let me go."

Chadwick laughed, "After I take you apart, the Organization will have your secrets and be able to use them against our enemies. That interests me more right now than any alien tech. I am intrigued by that girl too, where does she get her abilities?"

"I told you. I'm not answering questions." Kevin struggled weakly and looked to Daisy to see what she was going to do to him next. She was humming quietly to herself like she was in a kitchen baking an apple pie or doing some other enjoyable thing. Really, she was happily adjusting knobs and taking readings from a screen on the microwave sized piece of equipment on her cart.

They could all hear on the monitor attached to him that Kevin's heart began to race when he started to feel a very low grade electrical current on his skin at each of the large electrodes. The new electrodes were not for monitoring, they were for delivering an electrical charge through Kevin's body! To further intensify Kevin's horror, Chadwick used tape and attached several more washers, coins and a small rock to the skin covering his pecs, upper arm and shoulder all on one side.

"There's no way I'm gonna absorb those you know!"

"We will see."

"Alright Daisy, creep the voltage up just a smidge, still keeping it at a very low voltage for now. Only raise it slowly only as I tell you." Chadwick was in front of other equipment taking notes and didn't look at Kevin or his assistant as he gave instruction.

"No! Please don't!" Kevin begged and squirmed when he felt the dull tingling of the electricity begin to pinch and make his flesh quiver. In a few seconds and without even asking Kevin for anything, he told Daisy to raise the voltage three clicks. Kevin groaned and allowed his body to absorb the coin on his arm. It only spread out in an oblong shape, covering almost two inches of the skin on the front of his forearm. Kevin chose that one thinking it would hurt the least if it was cut away again . Chadwick instructed his assistant to up the voltage again not even looking at Kevin but speedily writing notes and observations.

"Hey! No!" Kevin squirmed and yelled, "I absorbed the coin!"

"Good for you, but we already know you can do that. This test is for something else. Gag him Daisy. I don't want the neighbors to hear him."

"Gag me? No!"

"You are in no position to argue . . . Daisy? Hurry up."

"But Doctor, there are no neighbors for many miles."

"Well, I think the screaming will be very loud, they might even hear him from town and I don't want to hear him either."

"Wait, no! I'm sure we can make a deal." Kevin's eyes were wide open and he clenched his jaw while the low grade voltage continued through his body. He tried to turn his head away while Daisy forced a round piece of hard rubber into his mouth. Attached to a heavy plastic face mask the mouth piece nearly gagged him while she buckled it tightly in place. Fortunately it loosened up a tiny bit when she finished and walked back to her equipment.

The apparatus covering Kevin's mouth looked more like a muzzle used in a police station or mental health care center than a gag. Kevin screamed into it for the first time when she got back to her equipment and raised the voltage again. He thought regretfully, too bad my powers changed while growing up in the Null void. I'd be kicking their butts by now.

The electrical current running through his body had become so strong, he would have been screaming loud enough to rattle with windows in their frames, but for the gag covering his mouth.

The pain from the electrocution got so bad he felt like he couldn't breath and every muscle in his body convulsed violently straining his joints already pulled apart by the chains. Any other human would have thankfully passed out by now, but not Kevin, he bit on the rubber mouthpiece and strained against the cloth lined shackles.

The burlap cloth covering his wrists, between his skin and the metal shackles had actually begun to smoke, the tiny bit of metal shackle that touched his wrist through the holes burnt in the cloth started to burn intensely, alerting him to something else going on.

Through the pain and even though he could barely move at all, he looked over at his hand and saw what was happening. At the same time, the pain he was experiencing suddenly stopped. He had been so weak, he suddenly felt very powerful he could feel his body absorbing, channeling and controlling the electricity just like old times. Dr, Chadwick looked over at Kevin, just in time to see Kevin smile maniacally.

Kevin stopped convulsing and seemed to relax as he directed a surge of power from all the energy that his body had absorbed through the cuffs on his wrists, and then through the steel poles the chains were attached to. The current easily found its way on both sides through the metal objects surrounding Kevin, to the equipment, overloading it.

Explosions all around the lab made Daisy and Chadwick take cover behind the wooden counters. Daisy recovered from the surprise first and jumped up putting on a pair of heavy rubber gloves. She got up behind Kevin with a large syringe and a very long needle and stabbed him in the back with it.

He screamed into the gag as she quickly pushed the long needle in up to the hub and injected the tranquilizer straight into his heart from behind. The needle passed dangerously close to his spine. He jerked and gasped once before he went limp, chin on his chest.

"Thank-you Daisy." Dr. Chadwick came out of his hiding place and checked Kevin's pulse at his neck. I see we have to restrain him better before we continue. While he was unconscious, Daisy re-wrapped his fists one at a time with a material made of rubber and put the cuffs back on him while Dr. Chadwick got behind him with a surgical kit open on a tall tray. The both wore heavy rubber gloves now.

Since it was only a tranquilizer and not an anesthetic in his system, Kevin moaned and his flesh reacted to the pain when an incision was made at the back of his neck under his hairline. He could feel Chadwick doing something that hurt but wasn't alert enough to even pick up his head.

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]]

At the hospital, while Ben and Joe waited for the results of Gwen's MRI and other tests, Dr. Joe let Ben rest in a chair right next to Gwen's hospital bed. Ben was holding her hand, but released it for a moment, gingerly trying to stretch and move his arm. His shoulder still hurt. Concerned, Joe didn't say anything but got up and went behind Ben.

"Off with your shirt Ben. I want to see what's wrong with your arm."

"Its okay, its not my arm my shoulder hurts a little."

Dr. Joe helped Ben take his black t-shirt off, not giving him much choice unless he went alien to get away. A burn mark and some swelling had been hiding under his shirt.

"We're getting an X ray of you, and changing that bandage on your chest too. Come on." He pulled over a wheel chair that had been parked along the wall and practically lifted Ben into it.

"No, I'm fine, I don't want to leave Gwen." Ben tried one more time to object.

"Ben, don't make me tranquilize you. We will only be gone a few minutes and they are monitoring her at the nurse's station, all the nurses have my pager number."

Wheeling past the nurse's station, right in front of Gwen's room, Joe stopped and whispered to a thin, redheaded nurse. She happily agreed, grabbed a novel she was reading on breaks and went into Gwen's room.

"See Ben, Gwen won't be alone."

The X rays were available right away. The technician put them straight into a viewing panel on the wall for Dr. Joe. He stared at them for only a moment with Ben sitting behind him anxious to go back to Gwen's room.

"Good news Ben, your shoulder's not broken at least. What happened?"

"Laser lance while I was Jetray."

"Ouch." Joe sympathized. On the way back to Gwen's room Joe still pushed Ben in the wheelchair for effect at least and grabbed some stuff out of a supply room.

The red headed nurse greeted Joe with a peck on his cheek and told him anytime he needed someone to sit bedside with a patient to let her know. Once in the room, Ben got out of the chair and went to Gwen's side. She looked exactly the same as when they had left her. The monitors beeping and the oxygen flowing through little tubes under her nose.

Dr. Joe put a sling around Ben's arm and tied it loosely. "Take it easy with your arm. Let it heal. How's your chest and the rest of you?"

"I'm fine Joe."

While they talked, Joe was preparing a shot to give him. Ben didn't notice what he was doing.

"Did you call Julie? I'm sure she would want to know what happened."

"No! I want her to stay away! What if she got hurt again?"

"That's not fair Ben. You really should call her and let her make her own decisions regarding her safety. She will probably want to visit Gwen and I think the hospital is pretty safe this time with Albedo gone. Wouldn't you feel better if she were here?"

Ben took his phone out of his pocket and called Julie. Still reluctantly. "Julie, Gwen's been hurt. Can you come? . . . room 415. Dr. Joe is here too." Ben hung up and looked sadly at Joe. "She is on her way."

Joe told Ben to hold still while he gave him a shot right in his shoulder. To Ben it felt like the needle went right through to the bone, but when it was over, in seconds his shoulder felt better.

"Thanks doc! What was that?"

"Magic . . . Okay I'm going to check on the status of Gwen's tests. They are probably done by now. I'll be right back."

Ben waited for Joe to leave and took his arm out of the sling to hold Gwen's hand. He concentrated as best he could and wished her to wake up. She squeezed his hand and whispered "I hear you Ben . . . you found me."

"Gwen!" Ben let tears run down his face after hearing her voice. He was sure now she would be okay. Dr. Joe came back and told him that Gwen had a concussion and would need rest and observation. He noticed Ben had been crying and Ben told him that Gwen had spoken. Joe didn't completely believe it after seeing the results of her tests. Ben tried, but couldn't get her to respond again.

"Is there anything you can do to try and find Kevin while I take care of Gwen?"

"You're right, I need to go find him. We can't wait for Gwen to feel better. Joe, when Julie gets here, promise you will take care of her, and when Gwen wakes up. Don't let her leave, and call me if anything happens."

"Alright Ben, same for you – call me and let me know what's going on."

Ben nodded and opened the window. He popped the screen out. Joe held the screen while Ben went Jetray and after he had flown through the window, Joe put the screen back in and closed the window. He watched Jetray leave. Jetray was out of sight in an instant after leaving the windowsill.

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To be continued . . .


	8. Chapter 8

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 8

By Crystalquirt

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13 from DA - thanks for helping me to get going even if it still took a while. :D

Description : The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings – violence, mild language. Gwenvin and Benlie

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]] 8

When Kevin finally woke up the first sensation he noticed was the back of his neck and the back of his head up to the crown burning and throbbing like too much pressure was trying to get out of his head. At least the rubber gag was out of his mouth, but it still sat close by on the counter.

"Ahhnnnng - What did you do to me?"

"An implant, a kind of control chip. You will do what we demand one way or another."

"Never!"

"Never say never."

Chadwick pushed a tiny button on the watch he wore. Kevin screamed when the pain increased and he thought his head might explode but then calmed down and glared at Chadwick.

"See it didn't do anything – I still want to kick your ass."

"Give it time, we still have some research and a little reprogramming to do."

Joe wrote in Gwen's chart, the name on the chart was Mary Winkleschmer. The chart would disappear as soon as he could take Gwen out of the hospital, but in the meantime, no one would know her real name.

As he wrote the findings of Gwen's tests Joe heard her moan. "Gwen?" He put down the chart and went to her bed side. "Dr. Joe? Kevin!"

"Easy Gwen, Ben went to find Kevin."

"No! Not alone- its a trap – I have to go." Gwen tried to get up but found it extremely hard to force her muscles to move, and the little bit of movement she managed made her head hurt more. Joe thought he wouldn't have to restrain her when she fell back on the pillow the first time.

"Ben will be fine Gwen, you need a little more rest."

"No!" she said again, this time her eyes glowed pink first before the glow spread to her head and down her back. This time she sat up and tried to swing her legs out of the bed. Joe blocked her. "Gwen! If you try to go in your condition you will only be in his way – do you want him to have to stop and save you first, before he can help Kevin?"

"No." defeated and disappointed that Joe out reasoned her, she laid back and promised not to leave again for at least a little while. Using that small amount of energy just trying to get up wiped her out, so she couldn't argue that Joe was wrong.

Joe check her IV and adjusted the drip. "I will be right back Gwen, I want to give you some more medicine that will help."

"No! No pain killers, I don't want to be drugged."

"Its not for pain, it will prevent complications and let your body repair itself a little faster."

Dr Joe left the room. Once alone, Gwen tried again to get up, and moaned when she realized the effort it took was just too much. She pushed herself anyway and fainted. She fell back on her pillow with her eyes closed.

Joe had the injection ready and a prescription filled for Gwen and stopped off in the supply room for more bandaging supplies. He was standing at the shelves moving small boxes of bandage tape looking for the size he wanted when he heard a noise.

He turned just in time to see the foot pedal from a wheelchair coming at his head. Joe hit the floor taking most of the items on the shelf with him. Daisy stood over him smiling. "Now to succeed where that incompetent Sir Elliot failed."

Dressed in a nurse's uniform no one even noticed Daisy going into Gwen's room. Gwen weakly turned her head slowly and looked, thinking it was Joe standing beside her. "Who . . ."

"Its okay dear, your doctor sent me in with orders to give you this in your IV." She found the line and injected something into it and then just to get it in Gwen faster, she opened up the flow valve all the way and smiled at Gwen. "This will make you much easier to handle until we get you to the lab."

"What? No, Joe said to stay here."

"Joe doesn't need to know, you will be a welcome sight in Dr. Chadwick's lab at the Forever Knight's new scientific research center. I am sure Kevin will be surprised to see you."

Even in her groggy state, Gwen understood that! "No, help! You better . . . Kevin!" her arm burned for just a moment as the foreign substance Daisy gave her spread through her veins. Gwen got tears in her eyes as she passed out, completely under the influence of what ever Daisy gave her.

Daisy pulled out the IV and disconnected the monitors. She quickly put Gwen's clothes back on her and put her in a wheelchair. By the time the nurse's got to the room to see why the alarms for Gwen's room were going off, Gwen was gone!

Kevin had passed out, his body exhausted from hanging by his wrists for so long. The new pain in his head from Dr. Chadwick's 'chip' was almost unbearable. Kevin started moaning and talking in his sleep. He dreamed he was a child again, being yelled at by his step father for bringing the dog home.

Since his body was chained up for real, when he tried to back away in his dream, he screamed when he found out he couldn't move away from his drunken step father when he pulled out a gun. Suddenly in a new twist, it was Ben walking toward him laughing and waving a gun at him and Kevin was sixteen again.

This time in his dream, he couldn't roll over and try to crawl away. Ben leveled the gun at him and fired. The burning and pain that he experienced in his dream made Dr. Chadwick's monitors all go crazy as his body reacted physically, thinking he had been shot for real.

"Hmmmm," Dr. Chadwick mumbled and started writing notes.

Kevin saw his dream-Ben lean over him laughing, "You will never win Kevin! I know you haven't really decided to join us and you're just waiting for your chance to kill me and Gwen! I have killed you first."

"Ben – Gwen," Kevin cried and startled awake. He groaned when he felt the pain in his chest, where he thought he had been shot. He looked down but couldn't see any new injuries.

The doors to the lab were across the room, and almost straight behind where Kevin was restrained. They suddenly slammed open when Daisy rammed them with the wheelchair that carried Gwen.

Dr. Chadwick looked up, "Good work Daisy, I knew you would succeed in bringing her to me."

Daisy giggled, "Sometimes one woman can get more accomplished than a whole squad of men."

"Indeed." Chadwick raised an eyebrow.

"Her - Who?" Kevin tried to turn to see, but it caused him such pain, his vision blurred and darkened. He was a little distracted thinking he had gone blind, but his vision soon returned. He just had to wait until Daisy came into his view without turning his head so far.

The discomfort he felt in his chest since his dream intensified to pure agony when he saw Gwen unconscious in the wheelchair! "Gwen, what did you do to her? When I get out of here I will make you all pay!"

Kevin started yanking on the chains that held him, his whole body bucking wildly. He made the whole steel platform and poles he was chained to shake with his attempts to brake free, but unfortunately shaking the platform was as far as he was able to get.

Daisy smiled at Kevin as she took Gwen to another steel platform near and to the side of the one he was on. There were four similar steel platforms in the lab. This one had no steel poles around the edges, but still had a matching thick steel plate above it mounted in the ceiling. The top had just one steel ring in the top with a circle of something that looked like lighting around the edge.

The fake nurse popped a wheelie with the wheelchair and bounced Gwen up on the platform. Kevin watched and squirmed in his chains as Daisy snapped handcuffs around her wrists similar to what he wore. Then she pulled on what looked like a steel ring revealing it was really a hook with a cable attached to it. She put the chain binding Gwen's wrists together over the hook and pushed a button on a remote.

The cable retracted, lifting Gwen out of the chair by her wrists and suspending her arms over her head. She could still touch the ground with her feet, but just hung limply scaring Kevin even more.

"What's wrong with her?"

"Well I'm not completely sure." Daisy teased, all though she didn't know everything about Gwen's injuries.

"I took her out of the hospital, right under the noses of her doctors and nurses. I guess Sir Elliot got a little rough when he tried to get her, but he still failed. I don't really know what is wrong with her, except for the drug I gave her to keep her quiet until we get her secure."

"What did Sir Elliot do to her! Where's Ben? - Aahhhng!" Kevin yelled when Dr. Chadwick sent him a shock through the chip in his head to shut him up. Once the pain stopped Kevin glared at them, waiting to see what they would do next and envisioning several things he was going to do to them as soon as he got a chance.

"You remain quiet for a while or I will gag you again myself." Chadwick threatened.

Daisy pulled the wheelchair off the platform with her when she stepped down. Gwen moaned when it banged her leg on the way by. Daisy pushed more buttons on a control panel and a pale green glow appeared around her body. Another switch and a more intense bluish green wall of light appeared around the edge of the platform all the way to the ceiling like a wall of light.

"That will keep her power's contained while we experiment to see what makes her tick, Doctor."

Kevin watched as Daisy and Dr Chadwick were able to walk right through the energy fields with scissors, nasty looking instruments and a handful of electrodes. The tough guy got tears in his big brown eyes as Gwen's clothing was cut from her body leaving her in only her bra and panties. Chadwick placed the electrodes on her chest, stomach and back – with three across her forehead.

Daisy assisted Chadwick as he removed a small piece of Gwen's skin, just to check it. She moaned and woke up screaming before he could finish.

Kevin started thrashing and cussing, spewing threats of all kinds. Chadwick stopped long enough to press the button activating the chip in his head. He yelled in pain one more time and passed out. Gwen heard Kevin and called to him, ignoring her pain until he continued. She groaned weakly while Daisy bandaged her side in the same area where Kevin had some of his skin removed.

"Don't worry honey, you are really beautiful you know? I will take very good care of you while you are here." Daisy ran her fingertips across Gwen's stomach as she turned to leave. Now Gwen felt a little nauseous along with all her other troubles.

To be continued . . .


	9. Chapter 9

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 9

By Crystalquirt

The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings – violence, gore - descriptive surgery, sexual suggestion, mild language. Gwenvin and Benlie

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13 from DA

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]] 9

Julie hurried into the hospital's, north elevator to go up and find Gwen's room. She paced and nervously chewed on a fingernail. This was not good! Forever Knights hurting Gwen was bad enough, but she was hurt while she was with Ben! He must be very upset. Julie got to the room and peeked inside. A nurse was cleaning up and unplugging equipment, but no Gwen.

Julie went on to find a quiet place in the hall, farther from the nurses station to call Joe. He didn't answer, but she was sure she could hear his phone ringing. She remembered his strange little Disney-like ring tone. Still no answer she called back and followed the sound that time. It was coming through a door marked 'Supply'. After looking both ways to make sure she wasn't being watched, she opened the door and looked in.

Joe was inside lying on the floor! "Joe!" She ran to him and tried to wake him up, when he didn't she ran back out in the hall and called for help. Two nurses came running to her and she pointed at Joe. They called for a doctor to check him over and when they got the okay, wheeled him out on a gurney with the help of two orderlies.

Julie told them she was his little sister so they would let her wait and tell her what was happening with him. They looked at her strangely so she quickly explained half-sister. "Please! He is the only family I have!" Julie lied. The nurse still glared at her, but agreed to let her stay.

As soon as Julie was alone again she tried to call Ben and got no answer from him either. Gwen's missing - how will I let him know?

The doctor treating Dr. Joe came out and told Julie that he was awake, and being a terrible patient. He asked her to go in and tell him to stay in bed for a little while and assured her that he was not hurt seriously. Julie gave him a hug when she saw him. "Joe! What happened? Did you know Gwen is missing?"

"Oh no, I went to get some supplies and meds for her and someone hit me from behind. Shit! After I told Ben I would keep her safe!"

"Everything'll be okay – its not like you could prevent this from happening. Do you know where Ben went?"

"He went to go find Kevin and rescue him alone!"

"Rescue Kevin? They captured Kevin too? Oh no! We have to get them back! And worse – Ben is out there alone!"

"Ben didn't tell you?"

"No, he has it in his head that he has to protect me. I don't know when he decided I was so fragile and helpless."

"Sorry Julie. He means well."

"I know he does. I'm gonna go find him!"

"How Julie, Ben is a kinda right – you can't fly or shoot beams from your eyes or anything."

"Ship is waiting on the windowsill right outside, he will take me." When ship heard his name he peeked in through the window, squealed and jumped up and down.

Joe smiled, "Okay Julie – Be careful and call me!"

Julie took the screen out of the window and climbed up. She watched as Ship turned into . . . well, a ship! He hovered just below the windowsill. She jumped out of the window. Joe panicked and jumped out of bed to look down. When he saw her standing on top of Ship he yelled, "That's not being careful!"

Julie waved at him and climbed down inside Ship. At Julie's request, Ship had created sensors and calibrated them as she requested to find forever knight tech or any alien or Omnitrix activity.

Ship was actively scanning as soon as they left the hospital window.

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]]

"How do you do what you do girl? Where do you get your powers?"

"Let me out of here and I will show you!" Gwen had trouble even holding her head up, but her threats sounded good. He head was throbbing and there was a sharp pain behind her eyes that made it hard to concentrate on anything. She gritted her teeth and tried to shoot Dr. Chadwick with energy from her eyes.

She only managed a soft glow that flickered right away and went out.

"Gwen, cooperate! Don't let them hurt you! I will figure out a way to get us out of here."

Dr Chadwick turned toward Kevin without a word and activated the chip in his head. Kevin screamed and his body jerked uncontrollably.

"No, Kevin! Stop hurting him!" Gwen had no trouble making tears.

Kevin stopped thrashing and hung limply in his restraints. "Alright girl, tell me – where do you get your powers?"

"I am part alien, my powers are not any that you can steal!"

"We shall see!"

Daisy stepped back over to Gwen when Chadwick left. Kevin glared at her, he had hoped they would leave Gwen alone for a while.

"You are so beautiful just hanging there so helpless, but if you tell me what makes you tick I will make sure Dr. Chadwick leaves you alone, but I can't promise I will." Daisy purred and leaned in uncomfortably close to Gwen.

Gwen twisted and pulled down on the cuffs and cable that kept her stretched up to try and back away from her, but the cable held her tightly in place.

"I told you all I know, and unless you are alien too, you can't do what I can do."

"Oh now there's an idea. All we need is some of your alien DNA?"

Since you already cut a piece of my skin off, I think you already have it."

"Oh that's no fun. You know there is DNA in every part of you. Perhaps I should cut off your beautiful hair. We would only need a small sample, but if I took it all, I could have it made into a wig! How do you think I would look as a red-head?"

"STILL BUTT-UGLY!" Kevin was trying to get Daisy's attention off of Gwen. "Having Gwen's red hair wouldn't be enough to fix your ugly face!"

Daisy grunted as she ran over to the equipment and flipped three switches. Electricity surged into the electrodes on his head, chest and stomach but much to her disappointment, Kevin just laughed. "Ugly and short memory too. You already figured out that doesn't work on me anymore.

Gwen watched in amazement as Kevin concentrated for an instant before lightening like energy shot out of his mouth right at Daisy and made her duck. Then he redirected the energy at one of the cuffs holding his hand it snapped in two, but before he could do anything else, Chadwick activated the switch in his head and he stopped abruptly. Kevin managed to pull off three of the electrodes before he doubled over hanging from one wrist screaming in pain.

"Kevin-no!" Gwen said softly. Daisy seemed to get pleasure from tormenting them and she didn't want to scream and encourage her.

"DAISY! How did this happen!"

"Sorry Doctor, I um . . . the equipment must have malfunctioned – a power surge perhaps."

"Well - get him chained up again. I want no more interruptions." Dr. Chadwick walked away mumbling something about alien DNA and stupid assistants.

Daisy chained Kevin so tightly he thought his shoulder's would come out of their sockets. She was finished playing with him anyway and left him hanging there moaning to go back to play with Gwen. Gwen squirmed and pulled on her hands again when Daisy stepped back through the energy field that kept her power's in check.

Daisy went right up to her and planted a kiss on her lips! Gwen squealed, her lips tight shut and turned her head away. Daisy hugged her tightly with her hands down the back of her panties cupping her butt in her hands.

Gwen growled with disgust and tried to imagine herself any where else! Kevin heard Gwen's cries and forced his eyes open, "Dammit! Take your hands off of her!"

"I don't want to, she is so soft, yet firm at the same time. Do you work out Gwen?" Daisy held her close a little further up her back and started kissing and sucking on her shoulder and side of her neck.

"Leave me alone!" Gwen struggled trying to get away, but Daisy seemed to like it and held on tighter. Kevin was about to explode and started yelling threats and cursing! Gwen screamed when she felt her bra being unfastened behind her back.

Dr. Chadwick came around the corner very fast and very angry. "What is going on in here! DAISY! Get back to completing your duties or I will have you replaced! You have one chance."

"Yes Sir." She gave Gwen's butt a pinch before she turned to get down off the platform. Gwen inhaled deeply since she had been holding her breath during that encounter. Kevin glared at Daisy as she came back near him after going by the cabinet and getting headphones, a syringe full of something and the gag!

"You won't be yelling anymore!" She had to stand on a stool to reach to put the gag back on him. He was up higher now after she chained him the last time. He tried to resist, even just by turning his head to slow her down, but gave in when she threatened to poke Gwen's eyes out if he didn't cooperate. "Not another squeak out of you, or I will scar her for life!"

She got another, smaller gag for Gwen just to make sure she couldn't get her in trouble again either. Gwen tried to kick her this time, but Daisy made similar threats against Kevin's eyes to make her cooperate. Daisy seemed to really enjoy putting Gwen's hair up in a ponytail to get it out of the way so she could fasten the straps on the gag. She stroked and touched Gwen's hair, much more and for longer than she had to to get her hair up. Gwen got a pain in her stomach from disgust when she heard Daisy start cooing and purring.

Daisy forced herself to get back to 'work' and took a long metal instrument off a nearby tray. It had a tube with a circular end, the edge sharpened into a round blade for cutting and tiny, 'grabbers' that slid in and out of the tube.

"Okay Gwen, this will only hurt a lot." Gwen's eyes got very big and she started shaking as Daisy rubbed a piece of gauze soaked with alcohol on Gwen's stomach, just under her ribs on the right and pointed the sharp end of the instrument at her. Her stomach muscles began quivering, she couldn't stop it, even when Daisy paused to run her fingers over Gwen's stomach and stopped to play with her belly button.

"Dr. Chadwick will forgive me when I show him this sample and tell him what he can do with it. I don't think he knows he has even a part bred alien here!" She kept on rambling. "Did you know that the liver is the best place to get a DNA sample?

"Kevin heard, once again the tough guy was driven to tears! He just couldn't bare it when Gwen hurt anywhere and this was so terrible he moaned and yelled through the gag, even though he knew he wouldn't be able to get her away from Gwen.

Gwen screamed when the instrument cut into her skin! The burning pain so intense she though she was being cut in half. With her eyes squeezed shut, forcing tears between them, she bucked and tried to kick, but Daisy whispered, "Kevin's eyes." and Gwen forced herself to hold still through the pain.

There was no blood at first, but on the way out, the device pulled a piece of her liver tissue with it, and a gush of blood followed. "Did I mention how much a liver bleeds? It really makes for a messy procedure." Daisy walked away with her sample and left Gwen with a small river of blood running down, soaking her thin panties over her hip and down her leg.

"Okay beautiful, I will be back to play with you some more when I finish with your boyfriend."

To Gwen it felt like her life itself was draining away. This new trauma, the fear and discomfort of being tied added to her head injury was a lot to endure and she got dizzy and sick to her stomach, yet she was more worried about Kevin when Daisy went back over to him.

Kevin didn't even react when Daisy gave him a shot of something. He just glared at her thinking about all the things he would do to her, and this whole place when he got loose. Daisy placed headphones over his ears and turned them up. It was a steady squealing sound of some kind almost like speakers going back with some sort of rhythm. It hurt his ears but he ignored it, still planning Daisy's demise.

He heard Gwen squeal weakly and looked over at her. Their eyes met, each more worried about the other, than they were about themselves. He noticed the ring he gave her on her finger and turned his head away so she wouldn't see his eyes tearing up. Whatever was in the shot was taking affect and he was getting very groggy.

Daisy left to go show Dr. Chadwick the piece of Gwen that she had collected and her ideas about the direction his research should take.

They were alone in the lab now. Gwen had stopped bleeding, and remained still, hoping it wouldn't start again. She stared at Kevin wondering what Daisy had done to him before she left. Kevin watched Gwen until he passed out, overcome by the drug Daisy gave him, the subliminal messages and Dr. Chadwick's instructions playing in his mind through the headphones.

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]]

To be continued . . .


	10. Chapter 10

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 10

By Crystalquirt

The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings – violence, gore - descriptive surgery, mild language. Gwenvin and Benlie

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13 from DA with suggestions by TEAMJakeward101 from - and thanks to whoever wrote 'ideas' they were great ideas, but I was past that point.

I don't think I've ever had writer's block :D Your ideas would make for a great short story – u should write it!

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]] From part 9

Kevin didn't even react when Daisy gave him a shot of something. He just glared at her thinking about all the things he would do to her, and this whole place when he got loose. Daisy placed headphones over his ears and turned them up. It was a steady squealing sound of some kind almost like speakers going back with some sort of rhythm. It hurt his ears but he ignored it, still planning Daisy's demise.

He heard Gwen squeal weakly and looked over at her. Their eyes met, each more worried about the other, than they were about themselves. He noticed the ring he gave her on her finger and turned his head away so she wouldn't see his eyes tearing up. Whatever was in the shot was taking affect and he was getting very groggy.

Daisy left to go show Dr. Chadwick the piece of Gwen that she had collected and her ideas about the direction his research should take.

They were alone in the lab now. Gwen had stopped bleeding, and remained still, hoping it wouldn't start again. She stared at Kevin wondering what Daisy had done to him before she left. Kevin watched Gwen until he passed out, overcome by the drug Daisy gave him, the subliminal messages and Dr. Chadwick's instructions playing in his mind through the headphones.

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]] PART 10

Jetray Ben flew on and on, looking everywhere that he could think of for any clue about Kevin, or sign that the Forever Knights were active. Their shooting range and known castles were all very quiet and appeared to be deserted. Ben landed and deactivated the Omnitrix only long enough to try to call Joe to check on Gwen. He hoped Julie would be there too, since he thought the hospital would be a safe place. Each time he tried to call, he didn't get an answer. It hadn't worried him much at first.

Finally, Ben landed on a deserted road in the hills far outside town and tried one more time. If there was no answer this time, he decided he would go back and check on them. He experienced relief like a wave when Dr. Joe answered.

"Doc? Where have you been?"

"Sorry Ben, we've had a problem. I was unconscious for a while. Someone knocked me over the head and now Gwen is missing. I am so sorry I couldn't protect her, but I had no idea that the Knights could come into the hospital and take a patient like that! I had people watching!"

Ben tried hard to not react but his voice cracked a little, "Dr. J-Joe was she alright?"

"Well, no Ben I'm afraid not. She had a head injury, and I don't know what else they might have done to her."

"What about Julie? Did she make it?"

"Yes, she was here. She wants to help you Ben. You really should call her."

"No! What if they take her too? I don't know if I can do this by myself! Even if I find where they are keeping Gwen and Kevin, how will I get them out safely alone?"

"Calm down Ben. I will help all I can. Worry about finding them first. Then come up with a plan when you see the situation." Joe decided it would be better to not worry Ben even more by telling him that Julie was out looking too with ship. He hoped Ben would call her and find out from her what was going on.

"Okay Doc. I gotta go. I will call you with any news."

"Alright Ben."

Ben slid down the tree trunk that he had been standing by and held his head in his hands. He was exhausted and hadn't eaten anything for a very long time. He couldn't even remember when. Soon though, he forced himself to stand up and finish the job. Before he slapped the Omnitrix he rubbed the ache in his chest, he really hoped he was strong enough to save Kevin and Gwen.

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Ben Tennyson laughed maniacally at Kevin. He had just put a bullet in the back of Kevin's leg and found Kevin's pain and fear very funny.

"Ben! Why are you doing this! I changed – I was on your side!"

"We don't want you on our side. We know we can't trust you. You are nothing but bad news and always will be. I'm just killing you before you have a chance to kill me. Ben leveled the gun at Kevin's head and the sound of the shot was so real it made Kevin jump in the chains.

The scene changed and Gwen was kissing him. Suddenly she yelled rape and stabbed him. He fell, still looking into her smiling face as she continued to yell 'rape'.

"You'll go back to the null void for this." Gwen threatened.

Kevin, after absorbing steel to use for his own special kind of armor, was marching into battle with Ben and his 'team' with the Forever Knights. Men in Forever Knight armor marched on both sides and behind him. He was leading the others against their enemies.

Hours of nightmarish stories were fed into his mind and warped by the drugs he had in his system. All those hours Gwen listened to Kevin moan and groan and scream into the gag. More than her injuries, Kevin's suffering hurt her the most. She longed to go to him and comfort him and get him out of here.

While she hung there thinking, she also realized she had no idea what happened to Ben. She had a vague memory of Humongousaur carrying her and explosions. Then she heard Ben's voice, she had the impression she was in the hospital and Joe was there, refusing to let her leave.

Chadwick came in with two very large Knights and went over to Kevin, paying no attention to Gwen. He put a folder down on a cart he wheeled over to Kevin's side before he stepped up on the platform. Kevin was still unconscious and he didn't react at all when Chadwick took the headphones off his ears.

"Kevin?" Chadwick started calling his name and picked his head up with a handful of hair. "Kevin?" he slapped his face. Gwen winced and whined into her gag. Kevin moaned and opened his eyes. "Doctor?"

"Yes, Sir Kevin. I have a mission for you."

"A mission? I don't think I can, I hurt all over." Kevin didn't seem to remember what had been going on.

"You will have to get some good rest today, for tonight you will be called to duty." Chadwick let Kevin down slowly. As the chains unrolled on their gears, Kevin had a hard time standing, but managed with a little assistance from one of the Knights.

Chadwick unfastened his legs first and then one arm at a time. Kevin groaned when his sore muscles and joints were moved after being held in one position for so long.

Chadwick showed Kevin pictures of Ben, Jetray, Humongousaur and Big Chill. Kevin had trouble keeping his eyes open to look at them. Chadwick gave him another injection, this time in his arm. Gwen watched getting angrier all the time. She pulled at the cuffs holding her until here wrist were red and bleeding.

"Here Sir Kevin, take these back to your room and study them until you go to sleep."

"Um . . . yes sir." The armored Knights half carried Kevin down on another level to a room that looked like a bedroom. It had all the comfort of home, including 'his' clothes to put on when he woke up.

Gwen was happy that Kevin was at least able to respond, but was very concerned about the way he responded. Her fiance saying 'Yes Sir' to any of the Forever Knights was something she never thought she would hear.

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Two Knights stood guard outside the room where Kevin slept the whole time. Dr. Chadwick arrived after several hours and they stepped aside to let him in.

"Sir Kevin."

"Yes Sir." Kevin jumped up wide awake and apparently feeling better.

Chadwick held up a photo of himself. "Who is this?"

"That is my friend and teacher. He saved my life, Sir."

". . . and this girl?" the scientist watched Kevin's face carefully as he looked at the picture of Gwen.

"She is a spy for the enemy. She must be stopped."

"Who is this?" he held up a photo of Ben.

"The enemy Sir. He tried to kill me, and ruin the Organization. He must be stopped and I have been trained to stop him, even at the cost of my own life."

"Good, Sir Kevin. Get dressed. You are read you go out on your mission."

The Knights gave Kevin his own air speeder and wearing knights clothing, minus the armor, he climbed on the armored, weaponed ready craft. He pushed buttons and held onto levers and it lifted off smoothly like he had been flying one for years.

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]]

Gwen was left alone for hours too. Left in her underwear she was cold. Left to her thoughts she became more and more anxious. Her thoughts were all very frightening and her fear made her very angry. She frowned and glared at Daisy when she came into the lab alone.

"Hello Gwen. I missed you. Are you bored?"

Gwen mumbled words that she couldn't remember saying before into the gag. Her anger was even obvious to Daisy, but she spoke with a syrupy-sweet tone.

"Dr. Chadwick loved my idea. He is working with your DNA now to figure out how it can benefit the Organization."

The noise in Gwen's throat sounded more like an animal growling, than Gwen.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you, your boyfriend is on his way to kill Ben Tennyson!" Daisy stepped up within the confinement of the energy field that was blocking Gwen's powers.

"Hm, Maybe I should tie your legs Gwen, I don't want to be kicked since your boyfriend is not here for me to threaten.

That did it. The thought of having her legs chained was too much it was now or never! Gwen reached higher and held onto the ring that trapped her arms above her head. She bit down on the gag and squealed a loud Kung Fu yell even through the gag as she wrapped her long legs around Daisy's middle and squeezed. If she could have she would have squished her right then like an insect.

With a twist of her hips she slammed Daisy's head into the control panel on the wall next to the pedestal. The energy field flickered and went off. Gwen continued to hold onto her, ignoring her punches to her legs and even her stomach. With pink glowing eyes, she called any mana that was near her. The only other living being near her was Daisy. Streams of mana energy left Daisy's body and were absorbed by Gwen.

Soon, Daisy hung limply between Gwen's knees and Gwen decided she had enough to escape. Gwen twisted and forcefully through Daisy off the pedestal. The control panel was inches away from her toe when she tried again to reach it.

Oh, Duh – guess I am tired, she scolded herself. Gwen changed her strategy. With pink beams from her eyes she pushed the button that started letting her arms down once down where she could easily see the cuffs, two more short zaps of energy broke the cuffs off her wrists. Gwen gratefully rubbed her wrists and stretched her arms as she ran to Daisy.

Daisy wasn't totally unconscious, but she was out of it enough that she didn't argue when Gwen took her long white lab coat with her name badge on it and her shoes. "Ow, where did you get such tiny feet?" Gwen stood the shoes long enough to get out of the lab and walking as calmly as she could, made it all the way down to a lobby like area and out of the building.

She kicked off the shoes and lifted her legs off the ground to cross them in front of her body. She floated down into a low area and through a thick stand of trees. Who needs shoes anyway? She wouldn't even leave footprints for them to follow. More mana flowed into her from the forest as she went and she got stronger.

Dr Chadwick was enraged when he found Daisy, um, dazed and his subject missing. "Well fine Daisy, you will replace her. I will test the super injections I just came up with using that girls DNA on you first."

He picked her up roughly and threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes to take her to the DNA lab.

After less than an hour, Chadwick could be heard cursing. "Well, guess the first experiment can be considered a failure. I trust you will forgive me, Daisy."

Chadwick waved at a puddle of pink bones and entrails before he left the lab. It was all that was left of his former lab assistant.

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]]

To be continued . . .


	11. Chapter 11

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 11

By Crystalquirt

The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings – violence, gore - descriptive surgery, mild language. Gwenvin and Benlie

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]]

Jetray-Ben was so tired, he didn't even see the air-speeder flying right at him. At the last second he swerved sensing something coming at him. He looked back to find a Forever Knight on an air speeder turning to come back at him.

"Well, I've been looking for Knights, I got my wish. Maybe this one knows where Kevin is."

Jetray met the Knight in midair and used his eye beams to disable the air speeder's engine. Jetray grabbed the Knight with his hind legs to keep him in the air while the speeder crashed to a pile of scrap below. The Knight, with a very familiar voice, cursed Ben and used his hands to pry his feet off his shoulders.

"Kevin?" Ben was pretty sure this was his friend!

The Knight fell, but landed on his feet ready for a fight. Ben landed as Jetray and went Chromastone right away. "Wait, before we fight, who are you?"

"I am the Knight assigned with the task of ridding the world of you, Ben Tennyson."

Ben recognized him for sure! "Kevin? What's going on? Gwen said you had been hurt! Are you alright?"

"She would like to think she succeeded in hurting, or killing me – but it will never happen. I will finish you both."

"Kevin, you're scaring me, quit messing around." Chromastone's voice seemed to echo in the evening air.

Two more Knights, one with a passenger landed in the road nearby and stepped off their speeders. Dr. Chadwick had arrived to watch. He wanted to see how his subject would react in the field.

Kevin continued threatening Ben. "Your right, I will quit messing around you alien bucket of crap, prepare to defend yourself, if you can."

Kevin used both hands and shot powerful electrically charged beams at Chromastone-Ben. With no effort on Ben's part, the beams reflected off of Chromastone's body and hit Kevin. He just laughed and reabsorbed the power.

"Kevin! Since when can you use electricity again?"

"Since forever you moron! Aren't you paying attention?" Kevin absorbed the steel off of what was left of the speeder he had been flying and charged Ben.

"Look! I'm Ben, your friend, don't you recognize me?" Chromastone disappeared and Ben's green-eyed human form stood facing him. "See? Its me! Ben – we're friends!"

"I would never be friends with someone who tries to kill me every time I've seen him!"

Realizing changing back to human was a huge mistake, Ben was barely able to change back into Chromastone before Kevin started shooting at him again. Kevin kept firing and ran at Chromastone-Ben and he tackled him when he got close enough. The steel amplified Kevin's electrical power and now, in direct contact with Chromastone's surface, the strange electricity didn't reflect, but was absorbed into his super-dense silicone body. Ben had never felt pain before while he was Chromastone, and it was the most intense, scary kind of pain he had ever felt.

The Omnitrix picked that moment to malfunction. Chromastone's screams turned suddenly into Ben's screaming human voice. Now with no protection against 'Sir' Kevin's attacks, Ben thought he was finished for sure.

No longer any need to hold his enemy down, Kevin got off of Ben but stood over him continuing his electrical attack. Ben managed to look up at Kevin, and Kevin was laughing, the powerful light energy reflecting in his eyes.

Ben screamed and thrashed, trying to roll away, but he fell flat and rolled onto his side into a fetal position. Under the continued attack, soon he stopped trying to move, his limp body jerking from the power of Kevin's continued electrical attack, even after Ben stopped fighting back.

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Ship detected Alien and Forever Knight technology and got Julie to the scene as quickly as he could. Just in time to see Kevin electrocuting Ben unmercifully and her boyfriend go limp like he had passed out. Ship went in low, hovering just off the ground.

"Ship! I don't know what's wrong with Kevin, but he's hurting Ben - we have to stop him-but don't hurt him!"

Ship whistled and opened a hatch. Julie jumped out and landed on her feet. She ran toward Kevin and Ben. Ship flew ahead of her and rammed Kevin. He yelled and held onto the front of Ship until they both crashed into the trees across the road.

"Ben!" Julie dropped to her knees next to him.

"Julie, no! Get out of here! There's something wrong with Kevin!" he was very weak, shaking uncontrollably and gasping for air.

"No kidding Ben, Ship and I just saved you from him! We will get you out of here – how badly hurt are you?"

"I feel like a chili fry. Where's Kevin now?"

Julie helped Ben sit up and hugged him. "He landed in the trees with Ship. Why was he was trying to kill you! What's going on?"

"I don't know exactly, but I want you to take Ship and leave right now! You could get hurt!"

"Ben, you are so thick headed! If I hadn't got here when I did, he would have killed you! If that happened I couldn't stand it! I will stay and help you save Kevin. I love you."

"Julie." Ben pulled her back to him and hugged her tightly. "Thank you Julie, for saving me. I love you too." Julie kissed Ben's ear and he turned his head to meet her lips with his.

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Kevin climbed out from under Ship and found a power relay just off the side of the road. The powerlines were put underground in this area to preserve the natural beauty of the forest. Kevin crumpled the panel with his steel coated arms and threw it to the side. He grabbed the wires inside and moaned with joy and pleasure while he absorbed the electricity, fully recharging all of his power!

Ben and Julie's kiss was interrupted when Kevin came running out of the trees at them. Cursing and threatening Ben, he didn't seem to recognize Julie at all, but was completely focused on Ben. They jumped up and Ben got in front of her. He slapped the Omnitrix - with no luck! It was glowing blue and he whined, "Rebooting! Must have been the electrical attack! Julie-Run!"

He had to practically push her to make her go first and ran right behind her. Kevin followed and started shooting electrical pulses at them. The first shots hit the ground at Ben's feet and he jumped over the small explosions, but the next blast, got him in the leg and he fell. "Ahhg."

Julie stopped and looked back when she heard Ben cry out. "No Julie, keep running!" he saw her stop and yelled at her.

"Ship!" she called to her little pet for help, hoping he could respond as she ran back to Ben.

Kevin fired at Ben again hitting him in the chest and burning right through his shirt and bandage. He screamed in agony. Julie grabbed him by his shirt and tried to pull him away, but she got zapped and fell back after touching Ben. He groaned weakly and curled into a ball.

A pink barrier interrupted Kevin's stream of electricity and Gwen stepped out of the trees. She and Kevin faced each other. Julie tried to pick Ben up but wound up sitting on the ground with him in her lap. "Ben – please be okay- try to get up!"

"I can't." he moaned. "Just go!"

"I'm NOT leaving you!" She started pulling on Ben's shirt trying to drag him away while she called to Ship.

Kevin didn't try to attack Gwen right away, but stopped his attack on Ben and just stared at her. She was still barefooted and wearing Daisy's lab coat. Kevin seemed confused.

Julie fell again and dropped Ben. He moaned and rolled over on his side. Julie tried again, "Ben get up! Gwen's here!" Ben tried harder to move, but groaned and held his chest in agony still not able to get up for his chest hurting. Julie sat back down and pulled Ben up in her arms. Using one hand she called Joe and told him where she thought they were, but wasn't sure exactly how far Ship had flown.

Gwen tried to reason with Kevin. "Stop Kevin! Dr. Chadwick brainwashed you! Ben isn't your enemy!"

"No- you are trying to trick me!"

"Oh Kevin, Don't you remember me either?"

"You are all my enemies! I have to kill you before you kill me! The Organization must prevail!" He shot lightening at Gwen. She easily put up a barrier to protect herself, but he used the other hand and fired at Julie and Ben.

Ben was still down and Gwen knew they wouldn't have a chance. She extended her barrier to protect them too, but now it wasn't as strong. It cracked under Kevin's attack and she moaned trying to strengthen it. "Julie, get Ben out of here!"

Julie tried to get Ben to get up again, but he couldn't even answer her. So she started dragging him away, holding under his arms.

"Kevin-Stop! Talk to me!" Gwen strained and gritted her teeth trying to keep the barrier up.

"There is nothing to talk about, Spy!" Kevin intensified his attack toward Ben.

Gwen had to drop the barrier in front of her to keep it stronger to protect Ben and Julie. "I'm not a spy, I am your fiance! Chadwick and the Forever Knights brainwashed you!"

"No, he will die!"

"Kevin please stop, give yourself a chance to remember! You can't kill Ben and you have to come back to us – the planet needs you and Ben to save everyone from the Highbreed and . . . I need you! Kevin, I love you!"

"No! You are lying to me! You are trying to confuse me!" Kevin pressed his palms to his eyes from the sharp pain he was beginning to experience in his head.

"Gwen!" Kevin said softly.

"Kevin?" Gwen asked him.

Dr. Chadwick took out a remote and pushed buttons. Kevin groaned and doubled over holding his head. "Get her first!" Chadwick could tell, seeing Gwen was confusing Kevin and wanted her out of the way, even before Ben. He told the two Knights that were with him to get ready to take over, if his 'subject' didn't complete the job.

Kevin charged Gwen, concentrating two electrical streams of energy at her. She quickly brought the barrier in front of herself and threw a blast of her own mana past the barrier at him. Covered in steel, he ignored her attack and broke her Barrier!

His power burned holes through the lab coat she wore and she screamed when the burn got to her skin. Her abdomen and shoulder where he struck her felt like they were on fire! She tried to concentrate to get a barrier back up but couldn't focus through the pain.

Julie ran at Kevin with a branch off a tree, hoping to distract him long enough for Gwen or Ben to recover. She hit him in the back of the head and though he had no helmet, he still had his own steel covering and it didn't even seem to phase him. Kevin swung his arm and knocked her back with less effort than swatting a fly. Julie screamed as she flew through the air, and landed hard on the asphalt out in the road.

Gwen lie on her back, holding her stomach where the pain from Kevin's attack was the most intense and she already had injuries. He walked up to her with his hand held out, ready to deliver the final blast, but instead held his head and groaned.

When Chadwick saw Kevin hesitate he tried to activate his control chip again. Kevin held his hand out and electrical energy ran back and fourth between his fingers, but he still strained to not hurt her. Gwen looked up at him with tears in her eyes. Kevin could see Gwen's skin through the torn and burned lab coat. Her skin was red and charred. Her wounds from the 'biopsies' had started bleeding again.

Kevin was so confused, he really hated hurting this girl – even though his every thought was telling him to do it! She looked so sad, so injured he stopped he looked at her again with a hint of recognition in his eyes. "Gwen?"

'Kevin, please stop! You promised we'd be together forever!"

"GWEN!" Kevin's armor dissolved as he dropped to his knees next to her and pulled her up in a tight embrace. Gwen, with tears in her eyes smiled and hugged him back. "Kevin! I thought I'd lost you!"

"I guess you did for a while! Gwen I'm so sorry!" he hugged her close and kissed the top of her head.

"Well that experiment failed. Clean up the mess, men." Chadwick said quietly. The Knights leveled their weapons at Kevin's back and fired. He screamed and fell forward, but caught himself before he fell on Gwen. Kevin jumped up, spun around and ran at the Knights.

"Kevin! No!" She cried, but Kevin was screaming in anger. He realized he had almost killed Gwen. He had vowed to protect her with his life and would do it now no matter what. Kevin ran at Chadwick, but the two Knights got in front of the scientist. Their metal armor did nothing to protect them from Kevin's electrical attack and they fell, but they gave Chadwick enough time to get to the nearest air speeder and take off.

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]]

To be continued . . .


	12. Chapter 12

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 12

By Crystalquirt

The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings – violence, gore - descriptive surgery, mild language. Gwenvin and Benlie

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13

[[[[[((((((((((B|e|n|1|0|A|F)))))))))))]]]]] 12

Kevin let Chadwick go, anxious to check on Gwen and the others. Running back to her, his armor dissolved and his own physical discomfort came back. With a tremendous headache, and pain from his injuries returning, the drugs Chadwick forced on him had worn off.

Slowing down a little, Kevin held his side the last few feet back to Gwen, but she was up and met him standing. She hugged him tightly, and he stood quietly and let her. It seemed no words were needed between them, but Gwen didn't hug him long, insisting the check on Ben and Julie. Kevin picked Julie up and got her out of the street. Just in time too, he could see flashes of light from distant headlights as someone drove toward them through the hills and around the curves.

Kevin sat Julie down by Ben. He was still down, breathing fast and shallow and holding his chest. "Oh No! Julie? What happened to her?"

"I'm so sorry Ben." meaning he was the one that struck Julie and was responsible for her current condition.

"It's okay Kevin. Even when the Knights are after me – it's all of you that get hurt. I would do anything to change this if I could."

"This isn't your fault Ben and we chose to stay and help you." Gwen tried to comfort him.

Ben sat up, painfully and gently shook Julie. "Julie! Please wake up! Where are you hurt?"

Julie moaned and sat up. "I'm alright Ben." She turned around and hugged him.

Kevin sat down and held his hand over Gwen's bleeding wound. "Gwen you are looking pale. Julie, there's a car coming, we should flag them down for a ride back to town!"

"Maybe, but where's Ship?"

When Ship heard his name he squeaked and hoped over from the trees.

"Ship are you okay?" He whistled again and she hoped that meant he was okay. "Can you fly us home?" Ship jumped up and turned in the space craft to hover over their heads. "Good boy! We have a way home, we don't have to bother whoever this is coming in a car unless it's Joe. You all have injuries that need care! I called him and told him what was going on. Hide for a minute, Ship, until we see who this is."

Ship flew over behind the nearest trees and waited.

Ben laid back, still holding his chest. The pressure he felt in his chest was turning into pain, and it was really starting to worry him, "My chest hurts – a lot."

"Hang on Ben." Julie sat down next to him with her legs crossed and pulled him over onto her lap. Ben groaned, his stomach muscles contracted and he rolled toward the ground hugging his stomach. It was all Julie could do to keep him in her lap and off the hard ground. "Oh crap! My stomach too? What's going on?" he moaned.

As the headlights got close enough to see the vehicle, Kevin saw first it was named "Pickle Juice" and said it out loud. Julie heard him and excitedly announced, "It's Joe!"

Julie's relief was interrupted when Ben's legs and stomach cramped severely again, his muscles were contracting from his nervous system taking such a long powerful shock. Julie held him wishing there was more she could do to help him. "Hang on Ben! Joe is here, he will know how to help you."

Kevin waved 'Pickle Juice' down just in case there was a chance Joe couldn't see them on the side of the road in the dark. Julie cried out, Ben passed out and started jerking violently all over! Julie held onto him tightly. "No! Help him! He's having a seizure or something!"

Joe stopped right next to them and turned off the engine. He heard what Julie said and got out through the back so he could grab his bag on the way.

"What happened to him?"

"He took several bolts of electricity right in his chest." Julie told him and watched Joe draw something up in a syringe.

"Oh man." Kevin mumbled and sank to his knees. Gwen sat close next to him and held his hand while they watched.

Even though he was a moving target, Joe quickly found Ben's vein and gave him half the injection quickly. He taped the syringe with the needle in his vein to his arm to hold it still and grabbed his other arm to set an IV. He let Julie hold Ben in her lap as long as he could while he worked on him, but soon needed him flat so they repositioned. He handed Julie a bag and told her to hold it up so it would drip into Ben's IV. While Dr. Joe worked on Ben, he reported his observations about his condition.

"Muscle contractions and even seizures are pretty common after electrocution, if the victim survives, his nervous system might be all screwed up. Ben's heart rate is irregular, we have to get his heart beating regularly. He could have a heart attack.

Milder than it had been, Ben's muscles still contracted and his hands twitched so Joe gave him the rest of what was left in the first syringe before he took it out of the vein. Dr. Joe put his hand over Ben's diaphragm to count his breaths. He startled and exclaimed, he's not breathing!

Julie put her hand to her mouth and tears ran down her cheeks while she watched Dr. Joe position Ben for artificial respiration. He quickly intubated him, with a plastic tube down his throat and into his lungs and attached a bag to the tube. He squeezed the bag and it forced air into Ben's lungs. Ben's stomach muscles contracted and he started breathing again on his own. Dr. Joe hooked him up to a small oxygen delivery system and went about drawing more drugs into syringes.

Kevin moaned and looked away, "I'm so sorry Ben." he whispered. Only Gwen heard him, "Don't you dare blame yourself for this Kevin! You didn't do this to Ben, or any of us. It was Dr. Chadwick and the Forever Knights."

"But . . ."

"No butts Kevin, you would never hurt any of us!"

Kevin felt desperate, "Joe, is Ben going to be okay?"

"I think so." he looked at Gwen and Kevin and saw they were injured too. "How badly hurt are you two?"

"I'll make it." Kevin answered quickly and looked back over at Ben.

Ship, still in the form of the huge destroyer rose from behind the trees and flew at them, planning to be near Julie. Ship could tell something bad was happening and Julie was upset.

Joe yelled and fell back when he saw the giant airship coming at them, "What the hell is that?"

"Sorry Joe, that's Ship, he's my pet, sorta."

"Wow, looks like you picked an original name for him at least. Lets put Ben in the truck."

"Ship could get us there faster."

"Uh . . . um no, all my medical gear is in the truck, it will work fine."

"Ship can take 'Pickle Juice' too, and fabricate anything you need as long as he's seen it before."

"Well, alright, if you're sure."

They all got in the truck, and Joe nervously drove Pickle Juice up the ramp into Ship. When he checked Ben over again, his heart rate was more normal. Julie sat on the bench with Ben's legs in her lap while Joe worked on him.

"Ship? Can you take us back to the hospital?" Julie asked sweetly.

Ship squealed and the sound of engines starting vibrated the truck for just a moment, then it was silence and the ride was so smooth they didn't realized they were moving.

Joe checked Julie too after Kevin told him she and Gwen had both been zapped too. Gwen got the other bench in Pickle Juice and Kevin sat on the floor next to her so he could hold her hand. Gwen seemed okay, except for the wounds in her stomach.

Kevin nervously played with the ring he gave her, turning it around her finger until Gwen asked him to come up on the bench with her, so he did getting between her and the wall. He held her tightly, and they rode spoon fashion all the way back to the hospital.

Ship landed and Joe drove Pickle Juice down the ramp and parked in the hospital parking lot near the 'emergency' entrance. He wasn't planning to take any of them in, unless he had too. Ship changed into his small cute 'pet' form, hopped up into the truck with Julie and sat on Ben's legs, on her lap.

Kevin climbed out over Gwen and stood up to stretch his legs, but he suddenly he grabbed side and moaned. Small spots of blood stained his light colored tunic that he got from the Forever Knights.

"Kevin, what happened there."

"Another doctor I met did a little surgery while I was awake, Gwen too."

"What?"

Gwen answered, "While we were held by the Forever Knights Scientist, Chadwick, he did experiments and took 'samples' without our permission or anesthetic."

"Oh no, I'm sorry you two. Let me see your wound Kevin."

"No its okay." Kevin backed away from Joe, smiling but really not wanting him to look. "Just take care of Gwen, and Ben. I'm . . . Aaahnnn" Kevin bent over, holding his head. Dr. Joe went to Kevin's side, "Kevin, you better sit down."

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Dr. Chadwick hovered silently nearby on an air speeder. He had some trouble keeping up with Ship, but was still watching the truck where his enemies were caring for their wounds. He began frantically pushing buttons on the remote he still had for Kevin's implant. His knights failed to 'clean up the mess' so he was going to try one more time to have Kevin do it. He didn't want to go back to the Forever King and admit he completely failed and now that he had seen Ship again, he wanted him back too.

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Julie shrieked when she saw Kevin firing up his hands again, intending to fry everyone in the back of the all metal truck. Gwen sat up quickly and wrapped an energy field around him to hold his hands to his sides. She held him tightly against the truck doors but all he could touch was her mana field.

Gwen got up and walked up to Kevin, and through her mana field hugged him. "Kevin, are you in there?"

"Let me go! I have to finish my mission."

"No. I won't let you hurt anyone Kevin. You've changed, you wouldn't be able to live with yourself if you killed someone!"

Kevin continued to cuss and threaten their lives. Gwen tightened her mana until Kevin couldn't speak, or breathe. He struggled - gasping for air! Gwen's eyes glowed pink as she strained to keep her hold on Kevin. Pink glowing tears ran down Gwen's face.

"Gwen! Stop, I think he's had enough." Julie begged.

Gwen could still feel the negative, foreign influence spilling out of Kevin like someone who truly has evil intentions has a dark aura and through her connection with him, she knew just how much control Chadwick still had. This was not 'her' Kevin!

Joe was even getting nervous now. "Gwen – you better let him go."

Gwen still held him, she knew if she let him go, while Chadwick was still in control, he would hurt or even kill all of them. Kevin soon stopped struggling and Gwen took a deep breath. Gwen had choked Kevin unconscious! She released him from her mana lash and strained to hold him up. Joe joined her and helped her hold him up long enough to get him on the bench. Gwen begged, "Please save him!"

Joe covered Kevin's mouth and nose with a mask and squeezed the bag attached to it a few times delivering pure oxygen to his lungs. Kevin was breathing, but before he could wake all the way up, Dr Joe got ready to give him something to keep him asleep until they could figure out what happened to him.

Gwen told Joe, "In the lab, Chadwick used a remote control that caused Kevin pain in his head. He did it to him again when he showed up out in the forest."

Joe started examining Kevin's head and felt something in the center, in back. He lifted Kevin's shoulder and hip and rolled him up on his side so he could see and soon found the swollen incision that had been closed with metal staples where the implant had been inserted. "Uh, oh. I suspect he has some sort of implant in his head. This could be serious! And what kind of moron doctor would use staples on such a small incision in that area!"

"I need X-rays so I can find exactly what's in there!." Joe stood up to go in and get a gurney to take Kevin into the hospital with, but Julie stopped him. Ship, can you be a radiograph machine, to let us see inside Kevin?" Ship whistled and turned into a small box, on a stand over the bench where Kevin lie. Ship had made a track, that Dr. Joe could run him back and fourth on to get him in the right place. Joe was amazed. He positioned him, but asked "Where is the film?"

Ship whistled and a light box appeared on the wall of the truck over Kevin. A perfect image of Kevin's skull and neck showed on the screen! Dr. Joe moved the box with the lens in it and the image on the wall changed. "Wow, Ship! You are awesome!" Ship whistled in agreement.

Dr. Joe got a close up image of the little metal chip and studied it thoughtfully. He rolled Kevin over on his side and looked at it from the side. The smile was gone from his face. ":Lets get that thing out, now!" he called someone and asked them to come with a surgical pack.

Soon an RN named Shirley with a large medical bag stood behind the truck patiently after she knocked.

"But Joe! Who is she? What if she sees Ship – won't this whole situation seem very strange to her?"

"She knows who the plumbers are, and knows about what's been happening, that I have been traveling with you. Shirley is the nurse who sat with Gwen before they the Knights took her from the hospital. She won't even be startled by Ship. Shirley is a 'very' close friend of mine."

"Wow, I guess it's good for us that you have so many close friends." Julie got up and let her in.

"Hi, I'm Shirley." she said to Julie and Gwen, "I brought what you asked for, Joe."

"Thanks Shirley." Julie stepped back so she could climb up and slammed the doors behind her to lock them.

Shirley handed the bag to Joe and went to Ben first. She counted his respirations and checked his pulse. "Pulse 80, regular, respirations 22." she smiled at Julie, Joe thanked her. "I need you to help me take this thing out of this boy's head."

Shirley looked up at the X-ray images that Ship was displaying. "A mad-man, calling himself doctor got hold of this young man and put this thing in his head. There is a hole in his skull – this thing is attached to the inside of the bone and see," he traced on the x-ray little wires that went off of it like spider's legs into Kevin's brain. "This thing has a hold right into his brain tissue."

Shirley frowned, "You sure you want to do that out here Joe? It would be safer in a real OR."

It would take too long to get an OR inside, there would be too many questions, and if he wakes up? I don't know what this thing is capable of – I don't want to endanger anyone else."

Joe mounted a device on the end of the bench to hold Kevin's head still while he lie face down. The padded metal frame would support Kevin's head, allow him to breathe.

"This thing is trying to make him kill us." Dr Joe set an IV in Kevin's arm too and started giving him a little more anesthesia to make sure he stayed asleep. "Shave the back of his head for me and scrub the incision, I will go in the same way so I can clean the area well and hopefully keep him from getting an infection from the dirty, first surgery."

Joe had scrubbed his hands and was putting on gloves. "Okay – lets do it! I want that foreign object out of his head, now."

It was crowded in the back, so Gwen sat in the passenger seat holding her side, worrying. She couldn't see Kevin's head from where she was, which was alright, seeing more of his blood was not something she looked forward to. She could see what was going on on the wall. Ship was still creating images of the procedure she could see the hole that had been drilled in Kevin's skull and Dr. Joe's hands as he began.

Julie could have seen it all, but really didn't want to, she moved closer to Gwen and sat by Ben's head playing with his hair. He moaned softly and opened his eyes. "Ow. What's going on?"

"Were safe, mostly." Julie answered him.

Ben tried to sit up and realized where he was, and that there was a IV in his arm again. "Oh no, not again." Julie helped Ben sit up.

"Gwen!" he stood up, excited to see his cousin. "Careful Ben, don't pullout the IV." Gwen went to him and he grabbed her and hugged her.

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Chadwick had been pushing the buttons on his remote frantically trying to make Kevin go berserk and kill them all. He was very angry since there was no commotion that he could see going on inside, and now another nurse had joined them.

"They must be trying to remove my control chip. I won't let that happen. I will blow it up first!"

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Ben saw Dr. Joe was getting ready to do something to Kevin, he paused and stared at the x-rays that showed the little piece of metal in Kevin's head.

"What did the Knights do to him, Gwen?"

"Chadwick put that thing in his head to control him, it has something to do with his brainwashing. I saw him use a remote control in the lab when he wanted more control of him." Gwen's eyes looked very wet still.

"I'm sure Dr. Joe will save him and bring him back to his old self." Ben gave Gwen a hug.

Julie added, "He grabbed his head, right here in the truck and tried to kill you Ben. Chadwick almost caused him to kill us all, but Gwen was able to restrain him."

Ben thought for a moment, "A remote? Chadwick used a remote in the lab right? What would have made it go off here? What made him attack now?"

Gwen suddenly thought the same thing Ben was thinking. "Chadwick must be close by!"

Before anyone could stop him, Ben pulled the IV out and stumbled up front. He sat in the driver's seat for a second holding his chest and opened the door. Dr. Joe saw him, "Ben what are you doing? Somebody stop him! He could really hurt himself! We don't know yet how much damage his heart received from the electrical attack!"

Gwen, still wearing the torn and burned lab coat landed on the ground next to Ben. "I will get him." she told the others. And when she caught up with Ben she begged him, "Ben, take care of yourself – get back in the truck – I will find Chadwick!"

"No way! You are hurt too!" their argument was interrupted by a loud noise that rocked the truck, Julie screamed. n"That was an explosion!" Gwen went to the back of the truck as quickly as she could and opened the doors. Ben climbed back in through the driver's door, closest to where Julie had fallen. She was lying between the front seats, but was already trying to get up. Ben helped her. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, check on the others." Ben put her in the passenger seat and went to the back. Nurse Shirley was sitting on the bench across from Kevin looking dazed, Dr. Joe was on his back on the floor in between the benches. Kevin looked alright. Gwen was with him. He was still under anesthesia and looked unharmed by the explosion.

"Joe! What happened?"

"Everything's alright. I got the thing out of his head before it blew up."

"Joe! That was the thing in Kevin's head that blew up?"

Ben saw his hand was burned! "Joe your hand."

"I'll be fine, but Shirley, can you finish closing Kevin's incision? I can't move my fingers right now."

"I can, and I'm fine, thanks." she said sarcastically and gave Joe a peck on the cheek when she went by him to get to Kevin's side.

"Kevin should be waking up soon. I already reduced the rate of anesthesia."

"No problem Doc, this won't take long." Shirley was already knitting Kevin's skin back together. "Wow, good job nurse, that won't even leave an ugly scar."

Ben guessed, "Chadwick must have had a 'self destruct' built into the chip in case he wanted to kill Kevin! And to set it off he must still be close by!" Ben slapped the Omnitrix and went Big Chill. He went intangible and up through the truck's roof before anyone could say anything.

Kevin seemed as okay as he could be and Joe and Shirley were taking good care of him so Gwen left the truck intending to help Ben.

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To be continued. . .


	13. Chapter 13

Homecoming: the sequel - After Homecoming 13

By Crystalquirt

The Forever King decides to finish the job that Albedo started while they were in California. The task is turned over to Forever Knights' Scientist and Director of Technology, Dr. Joseph Chadwick. Impressed with Ben's friends' skills, but sure they would be easier to capture than Ben, he sent Sir Morton and a team of twelve Knights to kidnap Kevin and Gwen so they can use them to defeat Ben and get the Omnitrix.

Warnings – violence, gore - descriptive surgery, mild language. Gwenvin and Benlie

General plot suggested by Wolfpelt13

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"That kid! - Ben! Get back here!" Joe yelled at Ben, too late. The passenger door up front slammed. It was Julie leaving too. She jumped out and ran after Gwen. Joe and Shirley were now alone in the truck with Kevin and he was starting to wake up.

Joe observed, "Those kids! I should have just kept them all sedated. I hope taking the chip out of his head is all it takes to fix Kevin."

Shirley sprayed 'instant bandage' over kevin's incision to help protect it and the cold spray made Kevin moan.

"He will be awake in just a few minutes." Joe stood up and studied the images of Kevin's head again. Ship was keeping the images in real time, so now he could see that the chip was no longer in his head. Three of the tiny thin wires still remained in his brain tissue.

Joe growled. "I wish I could have gotten those out too, but I could have caused brain damage trying to get them. They shouldn't hurt anything just by being there."

He patted his x-ray machine and the green and black box purred. "Thanks Ship, you can change back, or be Ship, or however Julie says it." Ship transformed into his black and green slug-like pet shape, jumped to the floor and rubbed on Joe's leg like a happy cat.

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Big Chill, still transparent soon spotted Chadwick sitting on a Forever Knight air speeder, hovering behind the trees near the north parking lot. He had a spyglass and was waiting and watching to see some kind of proof that at least Kevin was dead, and Chadwick hoped he took the others with him when his head blew up! He was disappointed to see the the girls come out of the truck, but still had hopes that Ben and Kevin had been destroyed. His good feeling he had after he imagined the boys dead, vanished suddenly and he almost fell off the speeder when Big Chill appeared right in front of him!

Big Chill hissed, "Are you going to land that thing and give up or are we gonna have to fight first?"

"You! You should have been dead!"

Chadwick went for a laser lance, but Big Chill used his icy breath and froze the scientist's hand to the laser lance and the side of the speeder. The speeder crashed down through the trees and landed in a canal with high walls on both sides. Big Chill went down with it, the impact cracked the ice and Chadwick got free. He turned to run, but Big Chill was right in front of him again.

Chadwick panicked and pulled out pepper spray. He sprayed Big Chill in the eyes and took off running. He was a little surprised when that was all it took to make the Necrofriggian stop and turn away. Big Chill hissed and went to his knees, his strange eyes reacting to the chemical by forming a black film over them. Chadwick saw the unexpected effect his little spray had on the alien and stopped running. He went back to the speeder and got the laser lance again.

"Whats the matter hero, a little pepper spray enough to take you down? Your not as tough as you think you are!"

Big Chill jumped blindly at the sound of Chadwick's voice and sprayed ice fog where he thought his enemy was. Chadwick had already moved and his attack missed by a mile.

Gwen got to the edge above them in time to see Big Chill go to his knees. She used her mana to float quickly down the steep side of the canal and got in front of her cousin. Not even bothering to warn Chadwick or give him a chance to give up she threw mana balls at him. Chadwick fell back, got behind the speeder and shot back at Gwen with the laser lance. She quickly put up a barrier and looked back to see Big Chill had turned back into Ben. He was on his hands and knees coughing and gasping for air.

Julie saw where the battle was taking place and slid down the cement bank about forty feet behind Ben. Wild laser-lance shots ricocheted around her as she ran to him, but she gritted her teeth and quickly got to his side. "Ben what happened?"

"Sprayed something in my face! I can't see . . . Hard to breathe." he was afraid to tell her all the coughing and straining for each breath was making his chest hurt again too.

Ben fell over, Julie caught him and guided him down gently. She could see his face now and the residue of something oily that covered his skin and made it red and irritated. "Hang on Ben." She hurried and took off her sweater as she ran to the deepest channel where water ran down one side of the canal. Stray laser lance shots made her duck twice, but after she dunked her sweater in the running water and got it soggy she ran back over to Ben and wrung it out over his face. Then she wiped his face with the damp material.

"Thanks Julie, that's better. He eyes were teared up with his own body trying to cleanse his eyes more. Julie helped him sit up and put her arms around him to help him intending to get him up to take him out of the canal, but laser fire hitting near by changed her mind. She pushed him back down and lie next to him with her arm around him to keep him down.

"Julie! What's going on?"

"Gwen is fighting Chadwick. He's behind the wrecked speeder and she has up a barrier, but shots are ricocheting all around us!"

"Man I wish I could go Wildmutt, he didn't even have eyes! Or Goop – but he is still broken!"

"No Ben, Gwen can handle it, I think."

"She shouldn't have to! Here maybe Chromastone." Ben held the Omnitrix toward Julie hoping she could see it as he turned the dial. "Tell me when the Omnitrix is set for Chromastone and I'll hit it!"

"Wait Ben! Kevin's here!"

Ben looked worried, not sure that was a good thing.

Julie watched as iron-coated Kevin jumped off the top of the steep canal bank, he landed in front of Gwen feet spread a little apart and braking the concrete. Kevin sank up to his ankles in the rubble. Chadwick aimed and fired a continuous beam at him, and his steel 'skin' appeared to be getting hot, but Kevin just kept walking toward Chadwick.

Gwen let her shield go down. She was exhausted, dropped to her knees and leaned against the canal bank before sitting down the rest of the way. Mana from the trees and plants above started flowing into her and she started to feel stronger quickly. Julie was telling Ben what was happening like a commentator at a ball game.

Ben really wanted to go help, but Julie told him it didn't look like Kevin needed it. And besides, she held his Omnitrix arm behind his back. He though she wanted to hold his hand, but now she wouldn't let go.

When he was close enough, Kevin grabbed the laser lance out of Chadwick's hands and twisted it like licorice into a nearly round shape. Kevin grabbed him and threw him against the bank. Before he could get up and get away, Kevin grabbed him around the throat and dragged him over to the speeder. Gwen got a little nervous when Kevin slammed his enemy over the hood and continued to choke him. She really didn't want Kevin to have to live with killing someone, and even more, didn't want him to go to prison!

"Kevin, stop you got him."

"Not quite yet! I think he needs to look more like he was in a speeder wreck." Kevin pushed Chadwick down and rolled the speeder onto him to keep him there. His armor dissolved as he ran to Gwen and dropped to his knees next to her. She reached toward him and he pulled her up to hug her. They stayed on their knees hugging, Kevin stroked her hair "You look terrible Gwen."

"Thanks sweetie, you look like ten miles of bad road yourself." Kevin stared into her eyes longing to kiss her, but she turned away and called to Julie and Ben, "Are you guys alright?"

Julie was helping Ben get up. Ben yelled back, "Were fine."

Julie answered, "No! We aren't!" Julie was guiding him over to the water so she could rinse his eyes some more. He was trying to act tough but she could tell his eyes were still stinging and he couldn't see. There were little fish living in the water, and the water was running and looked clean so she hoped her cure wouldn't be worse than his affliction.

Kevin and Gwen saw that Ben and Julie were both standing, and arguing, and there wasn't any visible blood on either one of them so they turned back to each other. "Gwen, I was so scared I would lose you! I woke up and Joe told me you had gone after Chadwick! What if he had captured you again?" he tightened his grip on her.

She hugged him back and explained, "Ben went after Chadwick alone, he needed back up. What if he had captured Ben? We had to stop him before he did anything else!"

"How did you guys even know Chadwick was around?"

"Joe didn't tell you?"

"No, I didn't give him time I guess."

"Well, never mind, Ben figured out that Chadwick had to be close by while Joe was taking the chip out of your head. It was really good you woke up when you did. Thanks for saving us."

"Anytime, Gwen." she thought he sounded so smug, she loved it. Kevin stood up and pulled her up into him. She was still barefooted so he picked her up, intending to carry her up the bank. Her eyes glowed a soft pink Kevin startled and held her tighter as he felt his feet coming up off the ground.

"Need a lift hero?" Gwen giggled.

"Um, I guess, this feels weird Gwen." Kevin forced a smile. Gwen floated them out of the canal and all the way back to the truck.

Hey Joe, Kevin captured Chadwick. He's stuck in the canal behind the hospital."

"Where are Ben and Julie?"

"Still in the canal with Chadwick. Ben got sprayed with something that burned, Julie is making it better."

"Guess I better go check on him. Shirley, wanna come with me to get security and see if their okay? We will leave these two here – to rest!"

"Sure doc." Kevin said. He held gwen's hand as she sat down on the bench. He sat down next to her and she put her legs over his knee. He pulled her closer with his arms around her shoulders. They gazed into each others eyes while Gwen stretched her slim body along his powerful torso to get up close enough to kiss him. He closed his eyes and gave her a long passionate kiss.

When the kiss ended, Gwen kissed Kevin's neck and colarbone before resting her head on his chest. He turned to the side a little and scooped her up in his arms. He lie down on the bench and placed her between him and the wall. She moaned with pleasure when he wrapped his arms around her. "Rest a little while Gwen."

Kevin smiled when he heard her breaths and realized she was already asleep.

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Julie rinsed Ben's eyes. Until he was able to open them again. They were all red and irritated, but he was very relieved to be able to see again, even if his vision was still blurry. He didn't know it was pepper spray that the mad scientist sprayed in his eyes and worried a little that it might do permanent damage. They turned away from the water and saw Gwen and Kevin floating out of the canal.

"Wow, I guess we're on our own to climb out the hard way." Ben took Julie's hand and guided her to the bank, he got her to start up the steep bank first and he stayed close to help her climb out all the way. He wanted to hurry and find Joe and get the authorities to arrest Chadwick on charges of kidnapping and assault to start with. The Forever Knight scientist was still trapped under the speeder and cussing loudly about it.

When Julie and Ben got to the top, Julie stopped him, "Ben, how are you feeling, really?"

"Much better, thanks to you . . . I . . ." he stopped talking when Julie knocked him down in a soft, moist patch of ice-plant. "Auuh" Ben cried out in surprise. The soft ground-covering plant was growing under the trees next to the canal. Julie landed next to him and put her arms around him. "I love you so much Ben. I just can't wait to show you how happy I am that you were alright"

Ben put his arm around Julie's shoulder's and pulled her closer. "one thing . . ."

"Yes Ben?"

"No hickeys this time? Unless you want to tell me how to put one on you."

"It's fine then, no hickeys." Julie giggled as she leaned down and started kissing and nuzzling Ben's neck. He was nervous at first that she was going to start another hickey, but she didn't, she was teasing him though. Ben found her chin with his finger and guided her mouth to his lips. She whispered, "Are you sure all the chemical that burned you is gone?"

"It doesn't hurt anymore, are you chicken?"

"A little."

Ben grabbed her and planted a kiss on her lips, she squealed, but was soon caught up in the moment and realized nothing had burned. Soon her tongue was in his mouth making sure he was okay in there too. And she found him perfect inside and out. When his lips released hers, he saw her eyes were closed as she was still thinking about what Ben tasted like. She nuzzled his cheek and kissed both of his eyes closed.

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Joe and Shirley got hospital security and went looking for Ben and Julie. He found them in the iceplant sucking face. The two security officers chuckled when they saw the teens and slid down the bank to take Chadwick into custody until the police arrived. After a pounding by Kevin he had a little trouble climbing up the bank, but with the two large officer's helping him, he made it.

As they lead him by, Joe looked right at him and poked his chest. "You are a terrible doctor." Police officer's arrested him at the bottom of the hill in the parking lot and he was taken away.

Joe turned back to Ben and Julie, watching from the iceplant. "Well I guess if the two of you are alright, I'm taking Shirley out to eat to thank her for her help."

"We're fine Dr Joe, Aren't we, Julie?"

"Better than ever."

"Well fine then. Don't wait up." Dr, Joe looked down the gradual hill to his truck. "Shirley, mind if we take your car – 'Pickle Juice' is busy." they made there way back down the hill hand in hand and at the same time Ship was on his way up to find Julie.

Ship bounced over to Julie and Ben and watched them kissing. After a while, even he couldn't stand it anymore and landed in between them. The little alien make a face that looked like a giant stapler and snapped at Ben to make him back up. Then Ship growled at Ben and turned himself into a short wall separating him from Julie.

"Hey Ship! That is so not fair!. Julie – do something!"

Julie was too busy laughing to get control of her pet right away.

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Only two miles from the police station, the officer's taking Chadwick in were attacked. Their patrol car was disabled by laser-lance fire and the officers knocked unconscious by a five man team of Forever Knights. Chadwick climbed on one of the speeders with a Knight and they took off, Chadwick still cursing Ben Tennyson.

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END


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